Study on electroactive and electrocatalytic surfaces of single walled carbon nanotube-modified electrodes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salinas-Torres, David; Huerta, Francisco; Montilla, Francisco; Morallon, Emilia

2011-01-01

An investigation of the electrocatalysis of single-walled carbon nanotubes modified electrodes has been performed in this work. Nanotube-modified electrodes present a surface area much higher than the bare glassy carbon surfaces as determined by capacitance measurements. Several redox probes were selected for checking the reactivity of specific sites at the carbon nanotube surface. The presence of carbon nanotubes on the electrode improves the kinetics for all the reactions studied compared with the bare glassy carbon electrode with variations of the heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant up to 5 orders of magnitude. The most important effects are observed for the benzoquinone/hydroquinone and ferrocene/ferricinium redox couples, which show a remarkable improvement of their electron transfer kinetics on SWCNT-modified electrodes, probably due to strong π-π interaction between the organic molecules and the walls of the carbon nanotubes. For many of the reactions studied, less than 1% of the nanotube-modified electrode surface is transferring charge to species in solution. This result suggests that only nanotube tips are active sites for the electron transfer in such cases. On the contrary, the electroactive surface for the reactions of ferrocene and quinone is higher indicating that the electron transfer is produced also from the nanotube walls.

Mechanical response of wall-patterned GaAs surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Le Bourhis, E.; Patriarche, G.

2005-01-01

Wall-patterned GaAs surfaces have been elaborated by photolithography and dry etching. Different surfaces were produced in order to change the aspect ratio of the walls formed at the substrate surface. The mechanical behaviour of individual walls was investigated by nanoindentation and the responses were compared to that of a standard bulk reference (flat surface). Deviation from the bulk response is detected in a load range of 1-25 mN depending on the aspect ratio of the walls. A central plastic zone criterion is proposed in view of transmission electron microscopy images of indented walls and allows the prediction of the response deviation of a given wall if its width is known. The mechanical response of the different types of walls is further investigated in terms of stiffness, total penetration of indenter and apparent hardness, and is scanned in relation to the proximity of a wall side. Overall results show that contact stiffness remains almost unaffected by aspect ratio, while penetration drastically increases because of the free sides of the wall as compared to a flat surface (bulk substrate). The application of substrate patterning for optoelectronic devices is discussed in the perspective of eliminating residual dislocations appearing in mismatched structures

On equilibrium charge distribution above dielectric surface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu.V. Slyusarenko

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The problem of the equilibrium state of the charged many-particle system above dielectric surface is formulated. We consider the case of the presence of the external attractive pressing field and the case of its absence. The equilibrium distributions of charges and the electric field, which is generated by these charges in the system in the case of ideally plane dielectric surface, are obtained. The solution of electrostatic equations of the system under consideration in case of small spatial heterogeneities caused by the dielectric surface, is also obtained. These spatial inhomogeneities can be caused both by the inhomogeneities of the surface and by the inhomogeneous charge distribution upon it. In particular, the case of the "wavy" spatially periodic surface is considered taking into account the possible presence of the surface charges.

Holographic QCD with topologically charged domain-wall/membranes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin Fengli; Wu Shangyu

2008-01-01

We study the thermodynamical phase structures of holographic QCD with nontrivial topologically charged domain-wall/membranes which are originally related to the multiple θ-vacua in the large N c limit. We realize the topologically charged membranes as the holographic D6-brane fluxes in the Sakai-Sugimoto model. The D6-brane fluxes couple to the probe D8-D8-bar via Chern-Simon term, and act as the source for the baryonic current density of QCD. We find rich phase structures of the dual meson system by varying asymptotic separation of D8 and D8-bar. Especially, there can be a thermodynamically favored and stable phase of finite baryonic current density. This provides the supporting evidence for the discovery of the topologically charged membranes found in the lattice QCD calculations. We also find a crossover phase with the limiting baryonic current density and temperature which suggest a Hagedorn-like phase transition of meson dissociation.

Electron capture by highly charged ions from surfaces and gases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Allen, F.

2008-01-01

In this study highly charged ions produced in Electron Beam Ion Traps are used to investigate electron capture from surfaces and gases. The experiments with gas targets focus on spectroscopic measurements of the K-shell x-rays emitted at the end of radiative cascades following electron capture into Rydberg states of Ar 17+ and Ar 18+ ions as a function of collision energy. The ions are extracted from an Electron Beam Ion Trap at an energy of 2 keVu -1 , charge-selected and then decelerated down to 5 eVu -1 for interaction with an argon gas target. For decreasing collision energies a shift to electron capture into low orbital angular momentum capture states is observed. Comparative measurements of the K-shell x-ray emission following electron capture by Ar 17+ and Ar 18+ ions from background gas in the trap are made and a discrepancy in the results compared with those from the extraction experiments is found. Possible explanations are discussed. For the investigation of electron capture from surfaces, highly charged ions are extracted from an Electron Beam Ion Trap at energies of 2 to 3 keVu -1 , charge-selected and directed onto targets comprising arrays of nanoscale apertures in silicon nitride membranes. The highly charged ions implemented are Ar 16+ and Xe 44+ and the aperture targets are formed by focused ion beam drilling in combination with ion beam assisted thin film deposition, achieving hole diameters of 50 to 300 nm and aspect ratios of 1:5 to 3:2. After transport through the nanoscale apertures the ions pass through an electrostatic charge state analyzer and are detected. The percentage of electron capture from the aperture walls is found to be much lower than model predictions and the results are discussed in terms of a capillary guiding mechanism. (orig.)

Spherical domain wall formed by field dynamics of Hawking radiation and spontaneous charging-up of black hole

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagatani, Yukinori

2004-01-01

We investigate the Hawking radiation in the gauge Higgs-Yukawa theory. The ballistic model is proposed as an effective description of the system. We find that a spherical domain wall around the black hole is formed by field dynamics rather than thermal phase transition. The formation is a general property of the black hole whose Hawking temperature is equal to or greater than the energy scale of the theory. The formation of the electroweak wall and that of the GUT wall are shown. We also find a phenomenon of the spontaneous charging-up of the black hole by the wall. The Hawking radiation drives a mechanism of the charge transportation into the black hole when C- and CP-violation are assumed. The mechanism can strongly transport the hyper-charge into a black hole of the electroweak scale

Microporous nano-MgO/diatomite ceramic membrane with high positive surface charge for tetracycline removal.

Science.gov (United States)

Meng, Xian; Liu, Zhimeng; Deng, Cheng; Zhu, Mengfu; Wang, Deyin; Li, Kui; Deng, Yu; Jiang, Mingming

2016-12-15

A novel microporous nano-MgO/diatomite ceramic membrane with high positive surface charge was prepared, including synthesis of precursor colloid, dip-coating and thermal decomposition. Combined SEM, EDS, XRD and XPS studies show the nano-MgO is irregularly distributed on the membrane surface or pore walls and forms a positively charged nano coating. And the nano-MgO coating is firmly attached to the diatomite membrane via SiO chemical bond. Thus the nano-MgO/diatomite membrane behaves strong electropositivity with the isoelectric point of 10.8. Preliminary filtration tests indicate that the as-prepared nano-MgO/diatomite membrane could remove approximately 99.7% of tetracycline in water through electrostatic adsorption effect. The desirable electrostatic property enables the nano-MgO/diatomite membrane to be a candidate for removal of organic pollutants from water. And it is convinced that there will be a great application prospect of charged ceramic membrane in water treatment field. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Acid base activity of live bacteria: Implications for quantifying cell wall charge

Science.gov (United States)

Claessens, Jacqueline; van Lith, Yvonne; Laverman, Anniet M.; Van Cappellen, Philippe

2006-01-01

To distinguish the buffering capacity associated with functional groups in the cell wall from that resulting from metabolic processes, base or acid consumption by live and dead cells of the Gram-negative bacterium Shewanella putrefaciens was measured in a pH stat system. Live cells exhibited fast consumption of acid (pH 4) or base (pH 7, 8, 9, and 10) during the first few minutes of the experiments. At pH 5.5, no acid or base was required to maintain the initial pH constant. The initial amounts of acid or base consumed by the live cells at pH 4, 8, and 10 were of comparable magnitudes as those neutralized at the same pHs by intact cells killed by exposure to gamma radiation or ethanol. Cells disrupted in a French press required higher amounts of acid or base, due to additional buffering by intracellular constituents. At pH 4, acid neutralization by suspensions of live cells stopped after 50 min, because of loss of viability. In contrast, under neutral and alkaline conditions, base consumption continued for the entire duration of the experiments (5 h). This long-term base neutralization was, at least partly, due to active respiration by the cells, as indicated by the build-up of succinate in solution. Qualitatively, the acid-base activity of live cells of the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis resembled that of S. putrefaciens. The pH-dependent charging of ionizable functional groups in the cell walls of the live bacteria was estimated from the initial amounts of acid or base consumed in the pH stat experiments. From pH 4 to 10, the cell wall charge increased from near-zero values to about -4 × 10 -16 mol cell -1 and -6.5 × 10 -16 mol cell -1 for S. putrefaciens and B. subtilis, respectively. The similar cell wall charging of the two bacterial strains is consistent with the inferred low contribution of lipopolysaccharides to the buffering capacity of the Gram-negative cell wall (of the order of 10%).

Filling of charged cylindrical capillaries

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Das, Siddhartha; Chanda, Sourayon; Eijkel, J.C.T.; Tas, N.R.; Chakraborty, Suman; Mitra, Sushanta K.

2014-01-01

We provide an analytical model to describe the filling dynamics of horizontal cylindrical capillaries having charged walls. The presence of surface charge leads to two distinct effects: It leads to a retarding electrical force on the liquid column and also causes a reduced viscous drag force because

Complementary surface charge for enhanced capacitive deionization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gao, X.; Porada, S.; Omosebi, A.; Liu, K.L.; Biesheuvel, P.M.; Landon, J.

2016-01-01

Commercially available activated carbon cloth electrodes are treated using nitric acid and ethylenediamine solutions, resulting in chemical surface charge enhanced carbon electrodes for capacitive deionization (CDI) applications. Surface charge enhanced electrodes are then configured in a CDI

Optimum Design of Gravity Retaining Walls Using Charged System Search Algorithm

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Talatahari

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This study focuses on the optimum design retaining walls, as one of the familiar types of the retaining walls which may be constructed of stone masonry, unreinforced concrete, or reinforced concrete. The material cost is one of the major factors in the construction of gravity retaining walls therefore, minimizing the weight or volume of these systems can reduce the cost. To obtain an optimal seismic design of such structures, this paper proposes a method based on a novel meta-heuristic algorithm. The algorithm is inspired by the Coulomb's and Gauss’s laws of electrostatics in physics, and it is called charged system search (CSS. In order to evaluate the efficiency of this algorithm, an example is utilized. Comparing the results of the retaining wall designs obtained by the other methods illustrates a good performance of the CSS. In this paper, we used the Mononobe-Okabe method which is one of the pseudostatic approaches to determine the dynamic earth pressure.

Experimental Assessment of Mechanical Night Ventilation on Inner Wall Surfaces

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ji, Wenhui; Heiselberg, Per Kvols; Wang, Houhua

2016-01-01

The cooling potential of night ventilation largely depends on the heat exchange at the internal room surfaces. During night time, increased heat transfer on a vertical wall is expected due to cool supply air that flows along the internal wall surface from the top of the wall. This paper presents ...... an experimental study of the cooling of wall surfaces in a test room by mechanical night-time ventilation. Significant improvement of indoor thermal environment is presented resulting from the enhanced internal convection heat transfer....

Electron capture by highly charged ions from surfaces and gases

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Allen, F.

2008-01-11

In this study highly charged ions produced in Electron Beam Ion Traps are used to investigate electron capture from surfaces and gases. The experiments with gas targets focus on spectroscopic measurements of the K-shell x-rays emitted at the end of radiative cascades following electron capture into Rydberg states of Ar{sup 17+} and Ar{sup 18+} ions as a function of collision energy. The ions are extracted from an Electron Beam Ion Trap at an energy of 2 keVu{sup -1}, charge-selected and then decelerated down to 5 eVu{sup -1} for interaction with an argon gas target. For decreasing collision energies a shift to electron capture into low orbital angular momentum capture states is observed. Comparative measurements of the K-shell x-ray emission following electron capture by Ar{sup 17+} and Ar{sup 18+} ions from background gas in the trap are made and a discrepancy in the results compared with those from the extraction experiments is found. Possible explanations are discussed. For the investigation of electron capture from surfaces, highly charged ions are extracted from an Electron Beam Ion Trap at energies of 2 to 3 keVu{sup -1}, charge-selected and directed onto targets comprising arrays of nanoscale apertures in silicon nitride membranes. The highly charged ions implemented are Ar{sup 16+} and Xe{sup 44+} and the aperture targets are formed by focused ion beam drilling in combination with ion beam assisted thin film deposition, achieving hole diameters of 50 to 300 nm and aspect ratios of 1:5 to 3:2. After transport through the nanoscale apertures the ions pass through an electrostatic charge state analyzer and are detected. The percentage of electron capture from the aperture walls is found to be much lower than model predictions and the results are discussed in terms of a capillary guiding mechanism. (orig.)

Cellobiose Dehydrogenase Aryl Diazonium Modified Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes: Enhanced Direct Electron Transfer through a Positively Charged Surface

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

One of the challenges in the field of biosensors and biofuel cells is to establish a highly efficient electron transfer rate between the active site of redox enzymes and electrodes to fully access the catalytic potential of the biocatalyst and achieve high current densities. We report on very efficient direct electron transfer (DET) between cellobiose dehydrogenase (CDH) from Phanerochaete sordida (PsCDH) and surface modified single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT). Sonicated SWCNTs were adsorbed on the top of glassy carbon electrodes and modified with aryl diazonium salts generated in situ from p-aminobenzoic acid and p-phenylenediamine, thus featuring at acidic pH (3.5 and 4.5) negative or positive surface charges. After adsorption of PsCDH, both electrode types showed excellent long-term stability and very efficient DET. The modified electrode presenting p-aminophenyl groups produced a DET current density of 500 μA cm−2 at 200 mV vs normal hydrogen reference electrode (NHE) in a 5 mM lactose solution buffered at pH 3.5. This is the highest reported DET value so far using a CDH modified electrode and comes close to electrodes using mediated electron transfer. Moreover, the onset of the electrocatalytic current for lactose oxidation started at 70 mV vs NHE, a potential which is 50 mV lower compared to when unmodified SWCNTs were used. This effect potentially reduces the interference by oxidizable matrix components in biosensors and increases the open circuit potential in biofuel cells. The stability of the electrode was greatly increased compared with unmodified but cross-linked SWCNTs electrodes and lost only 15% of the initial current after 50 h of constant potential scanning. PMID:21417322

Evidence for differentiation of cell wall poles in Bacillus subtilis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sonnenfeld, E.M.

1985-01-01

Previous data have suggested that the chromosome of Bacillus subtilis was found to the cell surface at polar regions. A significant corollary of DNA attachment to cell poles is the role of the cell wall in chromosome segregation. This project was mainly concerned with visualizing the DNA-cell wall association through autoradiography. The origin and terminus of replication were labelled with ( 3 H)-thymidine using a temperature-sensitive DNA initiation mutant. It was found that most of the radioactivity was associated with cell poles. Ultrastructural analyses of cell walls stained with dilute cationized ferritin showed that the polar area contained a site of dense electronegativity. It is not immediately apparent why cell wall poles would contain an area with a high concentration of negative charge. This finding may be related to the cell pole functioning as the site of chromosome attachment. An additional observation encountered in this study was that cell wall exhibited asymmetry with regard to negative charge, the outside surface being more electronegative than the inside. A significant consequence of this finding is that both teichoic acid and muramyl peptides are situated perpendicularly to the cell surface. This favored arrangement may facilitate cell separation during the division process due to opposition of like charges at septa. The results of this work provide further convincing evidence that the cell wall of B. subtilis is differentiated

Prediction and Experimental Evidence for Thermodynamically Stable Charged Orbital Domain Walls

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Qing’an; Gray, K. E.; Wilkins, S. B.; Garcia Fernandez, M.; Rosenkranz, S.; Zheng, H.; Mitchell, J. F.

2014-08-01

The quest for miniaturization is prevalent in many fields of modern science and technology. The ultimate limit for conduction would be a one-dimensional (1D) chain of atoms and, for example, carbon nanotubes are a notable approximation to this ideal. Here we present strong evidence for an unexpected phenomenon—a sliding charge-density wave along pseudo-1D, atomically homogeneous orbital domain walls (ODWs) in insulating bilayer manganite crystals. At a threshold electric field, crystals exhibit abrupt transformations to higher conductance, while x-ray diffraction confirms that these are not due to heating or melting of charge order. The conductance data resemble those of well-known pseudo-1D sliding-charge-density waves, in particular the presence of a depinning voltage. The vital link is our theoretical insight that ODWs must be partially charged due to competition between orbital-induced strain and Coulomb repulsion. The ideas found here embody a new principle for creating ultra-nano conductive paths in other materials and devices.

Beam, vacuum and walls, a 3-body interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arianer, J.

2002-11-01

The interactions between beams of accelerated particles, residual gas and walls involve complex physical processes. In most cases these interactions affect the quality of the vacuum and the value of the pressure. This course reviews all these interactions in a pedagogical and practical way that may be useful for any user of devices involving beams of particles. This document is made up of 6 chapters: 1) basic notions (Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution, kinematics of charged particles, collisions, excitation and ionization), 2) properties of beams (emittance, local effects, and synchrotron radiation), 3) interactions between residual gas and particle beams (Bremsstrahlung radiation, energy loss due to ionization, charge shift of ion beams, photo-absorption and photo-ionization, and slowing-down in a plasma), 4) surface properties (crystal structure, and interaction between surface and the residual gas), 5) interaction between the beam and walls (reflection and diffraction of electrons, secondary emission of electrons, desorption induced by electron and ion impacts, photon production, ion-wall interaction, sputtering, ion penetration, surface ionization and thermal-ionization), and 6) radiation-wall interaction (diffusion, damping, photo-electric effect, desorption induced by photons, pair production and laser-surface interaction). (A.C.)

Charge state of ions scattered by metal surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kishinevsky, L.M.; Parilis, E.S.; Verleger, V.K.

1976-01-01

A model for description of charge distributions for scattering of heavy ions in the keV region, on metal surfaces developing and improving the method of Van der Weg and Bierman, and taking into account the connection between the ion charge state and scattering kinematics, is proposed. It is shown that multiple charged particles come from ions with a vacancy in the inner shell while the outer shell vacancies give only single charged ions and neutrals. The approximately linear increase of degree of ionization with normal velocity, and the non-monotonic charge dependence of the energy spectrum established by Chicherov and Buck et al is explained by considering irreversible neutralization in the depth of the metal, taking into account the connection of the charge state with the shape of trajectory and its location relative to the metal surface. The dependence of charge state on surface structure is discussed. Some new experiments are proposed. (author)

Role of wall implantation of charge exchange neutrals in the deuterium retention for Tore Supra long discharges

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsitrone, E.; Reiter, D.; Loarer, T.; Brosset, C.; Bucalossi, J.; Begrambekov, L.; Grisolia, C.; Grosman, A.; Gunn, J.; Hogan, J.; Mitteau, R.; Pegourie, B.; Ghendrih, P.; Reichle, R.; Roubin, P.

2005-01-01

In Tore Supra long pulses, particle balance gives evidence that a constant fraction of the injected gas (typically 50%) is retained in the wall for the duration of the shot, showing no sign of wall saturation after more than 6 min of discharge. During the discharge, the retention rate first decreases (phase 1), then remains constant throughout the pulse (phase 2). Phase 1 could be interpreted as implantation of particles combined with a constant codeposition rate, while phase 2 could correspond to codeposition alone, once the implanted surfaces are saturated with deuterium. This paper presents a possible contribution of charge exchange neutrals to the implantation process, based on modelling results with the Eirene neutral transport code. A complex pattern of particle implantation is evidenced, with saturation time constants ranging from less than one to several hundreds seconds, compatible with the experimental behaviour during phase 1

Charged domain-wall dynamics in doped antiferromagnets and spin fluctuations in cuprate superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zaanen, J.; Horbach, M.L.; van Saarloos, W.

1996-01-01

Evidence is accumulating that the electron liquid in the cuprate superconductors is characterized by many-hole correlations of the charged magnetic domain-wall type. Here we focus on the strong-coupling limit where all holes are bound to domain walls. We assert that at high temperatures a classical domain-wall fluid is realized and show that the dynamics of such a fluid is characterized by spatial and temporal crossover scales set by temperature itself. The fundamental parameters of this fluid are such that the domain-wall motions dominate the low-frequency spin fluctuations and we derive predictions for the behavior of the dynamical magnetic susceptibility. We argue that a crossover occurs from a high-temperature classical to a low-temperature quantum regime, in direct analogy with helium. We discuss some general characteristics of the domain-wall quantum liquid, realized at low temperatures. copyright 1996 The American Physical Society

The Relationship Between Surface Curvature and Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Wall Stress.

Science.gov (United States)

de Galarreta, Sergio Ruiz; Cazón, Aitor; Antón, Raúl; Finol, Ender A

2017-08-01

The maximum diameter (MD) criterion is the most important factor when predicting risk of rupture of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). An elevated wall stress has also been linked to a high risk of aneurysm rupture, yet is an uncommon clinical practice to compute AAA wall stress. The purpose of this study is to assess whether other characteristics of the AAA geometry are statistically correlated with wall stress. Using in-house segmentation and meshing algorithms, 30 patient-specific AAA models were generated for finite element analysis (FEA). These models were subsequently used to estimate wall stress and maximum diameter and to evaluate the spatial distributions of wall thickness, cross-sectional diameter, mean curvature, and Gaussian curvature. Data analysis consisted of statistical correlations of the aforementioned geometry metrics with wall stress for the 30 AAA inner and outer wall surfaces. In addition, a linear regression analysis was performed with all the AAA wall surfaces to quantify the relationship of the geometric indices with wall stress. These analyses indicated that while all the geometry metrics have statistically significant correlations with wall stress, the local mean curvature (LMC) exhibits the highest average Pearson's correlation coefficient for both inner and outer wall surfaces. The linear regression analysis revealed coefficients of determination for the outer and inner wall surfaces of 0.712 and 0.516, respectively, with LMC having the largest effect on the linear regression equation with wall stress. This work underscores the importance of evaluating AAA mean wall curvature as a potential surrogate for wall stress.

Experimental and Theoretical Investigations of Glass Surface Charging Phenomena

Science.gov (United States)

Agnello, Gabriel

Charging behavior of multi-component display-type (i.e. low alkali) glass surfaces has been studied using a combination of experimental and theoretical methods. Data obtained by way of a Rolling Sphere Test (RST), streaming/zeta potential and surface energy measurements from commercially available display glass surfaces (Corning EAGLE XGRTM and Lotus(TM) XT) suggest that charge accumulation is highly dependent on surface treatment (chemical and/or physical modification) and measurement environment, presumably through reactionary mechanisms at the surface with atmospheric moisture. It has been hypothesized that water dissociation, along with the corresponding hydroxylation of the glass surface, are important processes related to charging in glass-metal contact systems. Classical Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations, in conjunction with various laboratory based measurements (RST, a newly developed ElectroStatic Gauge (ESG) and Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform Spectroscopy (DRIFTS)) on simpler Calcium AluminoSilicate (CAS) glass surfaces were used to further explore these phenomena. Analysis of simulated high-silica content (≥50%) (CAS) glass structures suggest that controlled variation of bulk chemistry can directly affect surface defect concentrations, such as non-bridging oxygen (NBO), which can be suitable high-energy sites for hydrolysis-type reactions to occur. Calculated NBO surface concentrations correlate well with charge based measurements on laboratory fabricated CAS surfaces. The data suggest that a directional/polar shift in contact-charge transfer occurs at low silica content (≤50%) where the highest concentrations of NBOs are observed. Surface charging sensitivity with respect to NBO concentration decreases as the relative humidity of the measurement environment increases; which should be expected as the highly reactive sites are progressively covered by liquid water layers. DRIFTS analysis of CAS powders expand on this analysis showing

An equivalent body surface charge model representing three-dimensional bioelectrical activity

Science.gov (United States)

He, B.; Chernyak, Y. B.; Cohen, R. J.

1995-01-01

A new surface-source model has been developed to account for the bioelectrical potential on the body surface. A single-layer surface-charge model on the body surface has been developed to equivalently represent bioelectrical sources inside the body. The boundary conditions on the body surface are discussed in relation to the surface-charge in a half-space conductive medium. The equivalent body surface-charge is shown to be proportional to the normal component of the electric field on the body surface just outside the body. The spatial resolution of the equivalent surface-charge distribution appears intermediate between those of the body surface potential distribution and the body surface Laplacian distribution. An analytic relationship between the equivalent surface-charge and the surface Laplacian of the potential was found for a half-space conductive medium. The effects of finite spatial sampling and noise on the reconstruction of the equivalent surface-charge were evaluated by computer simulations. It was found through computer simulations that the reconstruction of the equivalent body surface-charge from the body surface Laplacian distribution is very stable against noise and finite spatial sampling. The present results suggest that the equivalent body surface-charge model may provide an additional insight to our understanding of bioelectric phenomena.

Aspirin degradation in surface-charged TEMPO-oxidized mesoporous crystalline nanocellulose.

Science.gov (United States)

Carlsson, Daniel O; Hua, Kai; Forsgren, Johan; Mihranyan, Albert

2014-01-30

TEMPO-mediated surface oxidation of mesoporous highly crystalline Cladophora cellulose was used to introduce negative surface charges onto cellulose nanofibrils without significantly altering other structural characteristics. This enabled the investigation of the influence of mesoporous nanocellulose surface charges on aspirin chemical stability to be conducted. The negative surface charges (carboxylate content 0.44±0.01 mmol/g) introduced on the mesoporous crystalline nanocellulose significantly accelerated aspirin degradation, compared to the starting material which had significantly less surface charge (0.06±0.01 mmol/g). This effect followed from an increased aspirin amorphisation ability in mesopores of the oxidized nanocellulose. These results highlight the importance of surface charges in formulating nanocellulose for drug delivery. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cellulose nanocrystals with tunable surface charge for nanomedicine

Science.gov (United States)

Hosseinidoust, Zeinab; Alam, Md Nur; Sim, Goeun; Tufenkji, Nathalie; van de Ven, Theo G. M.

2015-10-01

Crystalline nanoparticles of cellulose exhibit attractive properties as nanoscale carriers for bioactive molecules in nanobiotechnology and nanomedicine. For applications in imaging and drug delivery, surface charge is one of the most important factors affecting the performance of nanocarriers. However, current methods of preparation offer little flexibility for controlling the surface charge of cellulose nanocrystals, leading to compromised colloidal stability under physiological conditions. We report a synthesis method that results in nanocrystals with remarkably high carboxyl content (6.6 mmol g-1) and offers continuous control over surface charge without any adjustment to the reaction conditions. Six fractions of nanocrystals with various surface carboxyl contents were synthesized from a single sample of softwood pulp with carboxyl contents varying from 6.6 to 1.7 mmol g-1 and were fully characterized. The proposed method resulted in highly stable colloidal nanocrystals that did not aggregate when exposed to high salt concentrations or serum-containing media. Interactions of these fractions with four different tissue cell lines were investigated over a wide range of concentrations (50-300 μg mL-1). Darkfield hyperspectral imaging and confocal microscopy confirmed the uptake of nanocrystals by selected cell lines without any evidence of membrane damage or change in cell density; however a charge-dependent decrease in mitochondrial activity was observed for charge contents higher than 3.9 mmol g-1. A high surface carboxyl content allowed for facile conjugation of fluorophores to the nanocrystals without compromising colloidal stability. The cellular uptake of fluoresceinamine-conjugated nanocrystals exhibited a time-dose dependent relationship and increased significantly with doubling of the surface charge.Crystalline nanoparticles of cellulose exhibit attractive properties as nanoscale carriers for bioactive molecules in nanobiotechnology and nanomedicine. For

Surface charging, discharging and chemical modification at a sliding contact

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Singh, Shailendra Vikram; Kusano, Yukihiro; Morgen, Per

2012-01-01

Electrostatic charging, discharging, and consequent surface modification induced by sliding dissimilar surfaces have been studied. The surface-charge related phenomena were monitored by using a home-built capacitive, non-contact electrical probe, and the surface chemistry was studied by X...... are also able to comment on the behavior and the charge decay time in the ambient air-like condition, once the sliding contact is discontinued. XPS analysis showed a marginal deoxidation effect on the polyester disks due to the charging and discharging of the surfaces. Moreover, these XPS results clearly...

Aerodynamics of a thin airfoil flying over and in proximity to a wavy-wall surface. ; Lifting surface theory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ando, S [Nagoya University, Nagoya (Japan); Ichikawa, M [Government Industrial Research Institute, Nagoya, Nagoya (Japan)

1991-05-04

Aerodynamic characteristics of a thin airfoil flying over and in proximity to a wavy-wall surface such as uneven ground or water surface were analyzed two-dimensionally by lifting surface theory in the simplest fundamental case only. The theoretical equation was simplified assuming that flow is inviscid and incompressible, all disturbances are sufficiently small, the wall surface is sinusoidal and rigid, and the wall moves in the same direction as free stream but with a constant velocity different from that of the stream. The equation was verified in the case where an airfoil with a constant angle-of-attack flies over a flat ground surface, and calculations were made with a set of important parameters such as mean airfoil height from the wall, wave length of the wall surface and the wall velocity. The whole effect of wavy wall proximity was divided into the first and second-order ground effects. The first one was just Kemp{prime}s upwash problem, and the second one was revealed through the present study which becomes significant for lower airfoil heights. 18 refs., 5 figs.

[Study on Hollow Brick Wall's Surface Temperature with Infrared Thermal Imaging Method].

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Ming-fang; Yin, Yi-hua

2015-05-01

To address the characteristic of uneven surface temperature of hollow brick wall, the present research adopts soft wares of both ThermaCAM P20 and ThermaCAM Reporter to test the application of infrared thermal image technique in measuring surface temperature of hollow brick wall, and further analyzes the thermal characteristics of hollow brick wall, and building material's impact on surface temperature distribution including hollow brick, masonry mortar, and so on. The research selects the construction site of a three-story-high residential, carries out the heat transfer experiment, and further examines the exterior wall constructed by 3 different hollow bricks including sintering shale hollow brick, masonry mortar and brick masonry. Infrared thermal image maps are collected, including 3 kinds of sintering shale hollow brick walls under indoor heating in winter; and temperature data of wall surface, and uniformity and frequency distribution are also collected for comparative analysis between 2 hollow bricks and 2 kinds of mortar masonry. The results show that improving heat preservation of hollow brick aid masonry mortar can effectively improve inner wall surface temperature and indoor thermal environment; non-uniformity of surface temperature decreases from 0. 6 to 0. 4 °C , and surface temperature frequency distribution changes from the asymmetric distribution into a normal distribution under the condition that energy-saving sintering shale hollow brick wall is constructed by thermal mortar replacing cement mortar masonry; frequency of average temperature increases as uniformity of surface temperature increases. This research provides a certain basis for promotion and optimization of hollow brick wall's thermal function.

Effect of Surface Hydration on Antifouling Properties of Mixed Charged Polymers.

Science.gov (United States)

Leng, Chuan; Huang, Hao; Zhang, Kexin; Hung, Hsiang-Chieh; Xu, Yao; Li, Yaoxin; Jiang, Shaoyi; Chen, Zhan

2018-05-07

Interfacial water structure on a polymer surface in water (or surface hydration) is related to the antifouling activity of the polymer. Zwitterionic polymer materials exhibit excellent antifouling activity due to their strong surface hydration. It was proposed to replace zwitterionic polymers using mixed charged polymers because it is much easier to prepare mixed charged polymer samples with much lower costs. In this study, using sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy, we investigated interfacial water structures on mixed charged polymer surfaces in water, and how such structures change while exposing to salt solutions and protein solutions. The 1:1 mixed charged polymer exhibits excellent antifouling property while other mixed charged polymers with different ratios of the positive/negative charges do not. It was found that on the 1:1 mixed charged polymer surface, SFG water signal is dominated by the contribution of the strongly hydrogen bonded water molecules, indicating strong hydration of the polymer surface. The responses of the 1:1 mixed charged polymer surface to salt solutions are similar to those of zwitterionic polymers. Interestingly, exposure to high concentrations of salt solutions leads to stronger hydration of the 1:1 mixed charged polymer surface after replacing the salt solution with water. Protein molecules do not substantially perturb the interfacial water structure on the 1:1 mixed charged polymer surface and do not adsorb to the surface, showing that this mixed charged polymer is an excellent antifouling material.

Effect of confining wall potential on charged collimated dust beam in low-pressure plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kausik, S. S.; Kakati, B.; Saikia, B. K.

2013-01-01

The effect of confining wall potential on charged collimated dust beam in low-pressure plasma has been studied in a dusty plasma experimental setup by applying electrostatic field to each channel of a multicusp magnetic cage. Argon plasma is produced by hot cathode discharge method at a pressure of 5×10 −4 millibars and is confined by a full line cusped magnetic field confinement system. Silver dust grains are produced by gas-evaporation technique and move upward in the form of a collimated dust beam due to differential pressure maintained between the dust and plasma chambers. The charged grains in the beam after coming out from the plasma column enter into the diagnostic chamber and are deflected by a dc field applied across a pair of deflector plates at different confining potentials. Both from the amount of deflection and the floating potential, the number of charges collected by the dust grains is calculated. Furthermore, the collimated dust beam strikes the Faraday cup, which is placed above the deflector plates, and the current (∼pA) so produced is measured by an electrometer at different confining potentials. The experimental results demonstrate the significant effect of confining wall potential on charging of dust grains

Effect of confining wall potential on charged collimated dust beam in low-pressure plasma

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kausik, S. S.; Kakati, B.; Saikia, B. K. [Centre of Plasma Physics, Institute for Plasma Research, Sonapur 782 402 (India)

2013-05-15

The effect of confining wall potential on charged collimated dust beam in low-pressure plasma has been studied in a dusty plasma experimental setup by applying electrostatic field to each channel of a multicusp magnetic cage. Argon plasma is produced by hot cathode discharge method at a pressure of 5×10{sup −4} millibars and is confined by a full line cusped magnetic field confinement system. Silver dust grains are produced by gas-evaporation technique and move upward in the form of a collimated dust beam due to differential pressure maintained between the dust and plasma chambers. The charged grains in the beam after coming out from the plasma column enter into the diagnostic chamber and are deflected by a dc field applied across a pair of deflector plates at different confining potentials. Both from the amount of deflection and the floating potential, the number of charges collected by the dust grains is calculated. Furthermore, the collimated dust beam strikes the Faraday cup, which is placed above the deflector plates, and the current (∼pA) so produced is measured by an electrometer at different confining potentials. The experimental results demonstrate the significant effect of confining wall potential on charging of dust grains.

Effect of confining wall potential on charged collimated dust beam in low-pressure plasma

Science.gov (United States)

Kausik, S. S.; Kakati, B.; Saikia, B. K.

2013-05-01

The effect of confining wall potential on charged collimated dust beam in low-pressure plasma has been studied in a dusty plasma experimental setup by applying electrostatic field to each channel of a multicusp magnetic cage. Argon plasma is produced by hot cathode discharge method at a pressure of 5×10-4 millibars and is confined by a full line cusped magnetic field confinement system. Silver dust grains are produced by gas-evaporation technique and move upward in the form of a collimated dust beam due to differential pressure maintained between the dust and plasma chambers. The charged grains in the beam after coming out from the plasma column enter into the diagnostic chamber and are deflected by a dc field applied across a pair of deflector plates at different confining potentials. Both from the amount of deflection and the floating potential, the number of charges collected by the dust grains is calculated. Furthermore, the collimated dust beam strikes the Faraday cup, which is placed above the deflector plates, and the current (˜pA) so produced is measured by an electrometer at different confining potentials. The experimental results demonstrate the significant effect of confining wall potential on charging of dust grains.

Effect of nano-scale morphology on micro-channel wall surface and electrical characterization in lead silicate glass micro-channel plate

Science.gov (United States)

Cai, Hua; Li, Fangjun; Xu, Yanglei; Bo, Tiezhu; Zhou, Dongzhan; Lian, Jiao; Li, Qing; Cao, Zhenbo; Xu, Tao; Wang, Caili; Liu, Hui; Li, Guoen; Jia, Jinsheng

2017-10-01

Micro-channel plate (MCP) is a two dimensional arrays of microscopic channel charge particle multiplier. Silicate composition and hydrogen reduction are keys to determine surface morphology of micro-channel wall in MCP. In this paper, lead silicate glass micro-channel plates in two different cesium contents (0at%, 0.5at%) and two different hydrogen reduction temperatures (400°C,450°C) were present. The nano-scale morphology, elements content and chemical states of microporous wall surface treated under different alkaline compositions and reduction conditions was investigated by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), respectively. Meanwhile, the electrical characterizations of MCP, including the bulk resistance, electron gain and the density of dark current, were measured in a Vacuum Photoelectron Imaging Test Facility (VPIT).The results indicated that the granular phase occurred on the surface of microporous wall and diffuses in bulk glass is an aggregate of Pb atom derived from the reduction of Pb2+. In micro-channel plate, the electron gain and bulk resistance were mainly correlated to particle size and distribution, the density of dark current (DDC) went up with the increasing root-mean-square roughness (RMS) on the microporous wall surface. Adding cesiums improved the size of Pb atomic aggregation, lowered the relative concentration of [Pb] reduced from Pb2+ and decreased the total roughness of micro-channel wall surface, leading a higher bulk resistance, a lower electron gain and a less dark current. Increasing hydrogen reduction temperature also improved the size of Pb atomic aggregation, but enhanced the relative concentration of [Pb] and enlarged the total roughness of micro-channel wall surface, leading a higher bulk resistance, a lower electron gain and a larger dark current. The reasons for the difference of electrical characteristics were discussed.

Electrostatic behavior of the charge-regulated bacterial cell surface.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Yongsuk; Brown, Derick G

2008-05-06

The electrostatic behavior of the charge-regulated surfaces of Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Bacillus brevis was studied using numerical modeling in conjunction with potentiometric titration and electrophoretic mobility data as a function of solution pH and electrolyte composition. Assuming a polyelectrolytic polymeric bacterial cell surface, these experimental and numerical analyses were used to determine the effective site numbers of cell surface acid-base functional groups and Ca(2+) sorption coefficients. Using effective site concentrations determined from 1:1 electrolyte (NaCl) experimental data, the charge-regulation model was able to replicate the effects of 2:1 electrolyte (CaCl(2)), both alone and as a mixture with NaCl, on the measured zeta potential using a single Ca(2+) surface binding constant for each of the bacterial species. This knowledge is vital for understanding how cells respond to changes in solution pH and electrolyte composition as well as how they interact with other surfaces. The latter is especially important due to the widespread use of the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory in the interpretation of bacterial adhesion. As surface charge and surface potential both vary on a charge-regulated surface, accurate modeling of bacterial interactions with surfaces ultimately requires use of an electrostatic model that accounts for the charge-regulated nature of the cell surface.

Combined centroid-envelope dynamics of intense, magnetically focused charged beams surrounded by conducting walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fiuza, K.; Rizzato, F.B.; Pakter, R.

2006-01-01

In this paper we analyze the combined envelope-centroid dynamics of magnetically focused high-intensity charged beams surrounded by conducting walls. Similar to the case where conducting walls are absent, it is shown that the envelope and centroid dynamics decouple from each other. Mismatched envelopes still decay into equilibrium with simultaneous emittance growth, but the centroid keeps oscillating with no appreciable energy loss. Some estimates are performed to analytically obtain characteristics of halo formation seen in the full simulations

Charged particle discrimination with silicon surface barrier detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Coote, G.E.; Pithie, J.; Vickridge, I.C.

1996-01-01

The application for materials analysis of nuclear reactions that give rise to charged particles is a powerful surface analytical and concentration depth profiling technique. Spectra of charged particles, with energies in the range 0.1 to 15 MeV, emitted from materials irradiated with beams of light nuclei such as deuterons are measured with silicon surface barrier detectors. The spectra from multi-elemental materials typically encountered in materials research are usually composed of an overlapping superposition of proton, alpha, and other charged particle spectra. Interpretation of such complex spectra would be simplified if a means were available to electronically discriminate between the detector response to the different kinds of charged particle. We have investigated two methods of discriminating between different types of charged particles. The fast charge pulses from a surface barrier detector have different shapes, depending on the spatial distribution of energy deposition of the incident particle. Fast digitisation of the pulses, followed by digital signal processing provides one avenue for discrimination. A second approach is to use a thin transmission detector in front of a thick detector as a detector telescope. For a given incident energy, different types of charged particles will lose different amounts of energy in the thin detector, providing an alternative means of discrimination. We show that both approaches can provide significant simplification in the interpretation of charged particle spectra in practical situations, and suggest that silicon surface barrier detectors having graded electronic properties could provide improved discrimination compared to the current generation of detectors having homogeneous electronic properties. (author).12 refs., 2 tabs., 28 figs

Melting of Domain Wall in Charge Ordered Dirac Electron of Organic Conductor α-(BEDT-TTF)2I3

Science.gov (United States)

Ohki, Daigo; Matsuno, Genki; Omori, Yukiko; Kobayashi, Akito

2018-05-01

The origin of charge order melting is identified by using the real space dependent mean-field theory in the extended Hubbard model describing an organic Dirac electron system α-(BEDT-TTF)2I3. In this model, the width of a domain wall which arises between different types of the charge ordered phase exhibits a divergent increase with decreasing the strength of electron-electron correlations. By analyzing the finite-size effect carefully, it is shown that the divergence coincides with a topological transition where a pair of Dirac cones merges in keeping with a finite gap. It is also clarified that the gap opening point and the topological transition point are different, which leads to the existence of an exotic massive Dirac electron phase with melted-type domain wall and gapless edge states. The present result also indicated that multiple metastable states are emerged in massive Dirac Electron phase. In the trivial charge ordered phase, the gapless domain-wall bound state takes place instead of the gapless edge states, accompanying with a form change of the domain wall from melted-type into hyperbolic-tangent-type.

Ion association at discretely-charged dielectric interfaces: Giant charge inversion [Dielectric response controlled ion association at physically heterogeneous surfaces: Giant charge reversal

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Zhi -Yong [Chongqing Univ. of Technology, Chongqing (China); Univ. of California, Riverside, CA (United States); Wu, Jianzhong [Univ. of California, Riverside, CA (United States)

2017-07-11

Giant charge reversal has been identified for the first time by Monte Carlo simulation for a discretely charged surface in contact with a trivalent electrolyte solution. It takes place regardless of the surface charge density under study and the monovalent salt. In stark contrast to earlier predictions based on the 2-dimensional Wigner crystal model to describe strong correlation of counterions at the macroion surface, we find that giant charge reversal reflects an intricate interplay of ionic volume effects, electrostatic correlations, surface charge heterogeneity, and the dielectric response of the confined fluids. While the novel phenomenon is yet to be confirmed with experiment, the simulation results appear in excellent agreement with a wide range of existing observations in the subregime of charge inversion. Lastly, our findings may have far-reaching implications to understanding complex electrochemical phenomena entailing ionic fluids under dielectric confinements.

Electrokinetics on superhydrophobic surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Papadopoulos, Periklis; Deng Xu; Vollmer, Doris; Butt, Hans-Jürgen

2012-01-01

On a superhydrophobic surface a liquid is exposed to a large air-water interface. The reduced wall friction is expected to cause a higher electro-osmotic mobility. On the other hand, the low charge density of a superhydrophobic surface reduces the electro-osmotic mobility. Due to a lack of experimental data it has not been clear so far whether the reduced wall friction or the reduced charge density dominate the electrokinetic mobilities. To separate the relative contributions of electrophoresis and electro-osmosis, the mobilities of colloids on a negatively charged hydrophilic, a superhydrophobic (Cassie) and a partially hydrophilized superhydrophobic (Cassie composite) coating were measured. To vary the charge density as well as its sign with respect to those of the colloids the partially hydrophilized surfaces were coated with polyelectrolytes. We analyzed the electrokinetic mobilities of negatively charged polystyrene colloids dispersed in aqueous medium on porous hydrophilic and superhydrophobic surfaces by confocal laser scanning electron microscopy. In all cases, the external electric field was parallel to the surface. The total electrokinetic mobilities on the superhydrophobic (Cassie) and negatively charged partially hydrophilized (Cassie composite) surfaces were similar, showing that electro-osmosis is small compared to electrophoresis. The positively charged Cassie composite surfaces tend to ‘trap’ the colloids due to attracting electrostatic interactions and rough morphology, reducing the mobility. Thus, either the charge density of the coatings in the Cassie composite state or its slip length is too low to enhance electro-osmosis.

Double Charged Surface Layers in Lead Halide Perovskite Crystals

KAUST Repository

Sarmah, Smritakshi P.

2017-02-01

Understanding defect chemistry, particularly ion migration, and its significant effect on the surface’s optical and electronic properties is one of the major challenges impeding the development of hybrid perovskite-based devices. Here, using both experimental and theoretical approaches, we demonstrated that the surface layers of the perovskite crystals may acquire a high concentration of positively charged vacancies with the complementary negatively charged halide ions pushed to the surface. This charge separation near the surface generates an electric field that can induce an increase of optical band gap in the surface layers relative to the bulk. We found that the charge separation, electric field, and the amplitude of shift in the bandgap strongly depend on the halides and organic moieties of perovskite crystals. Our findings reveal the peculiarity of surface effects that are currently limiting the applications of perovskite crystals and more importantly explain their origins, thus enabling viable surface passivation strategies to remediate them.

Wall reflection modeling for charge exchange recombination spectroscopy (CXRS) measurements on Textor and ITER

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Banerjee, Santanu; Vasu, P; Von Hellermann, M; Jaspers, R J E

2010-01-01

Contamination of optical signals by reflections from the tokamak vessel wall is a matter of great concern. For machines such as ITER and future reactors, where the vessel wall will be predominantly metallic, this is potentially a risk factor for quantitative optical emission spectroscopy. This is, in particular, the case when bremsstrahlung continuum radiation from the bulk plasma is used as a common reference light source for the cross-calibration of visible spectroscopy. In this paper the reflected contribution to the continuum level in Textor and ITER has been estimated for the detection channels meant for charge exchange recombination spectroscopy (CXRS). A model assuming diffuse reflection has been developed for the bremsstrahlung which is a much extended source. Based on this model, it is shown that in the case of ITER upper port 3, a wall with a moderate reflectivity of 20% leads to the wall reflected fraction being as high as 55-60% of the weak signals in the edge channels. In contrast, a complete bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) based model has been developed in order to estimate the reflections from more localized sources like the charge exchange (CX) emission from a neutral beam in tokamaks. The largest signal contamination of ∼15% is seen in the core CX channels, where the true CX signal level is much lower than that in the edge channels. Similar values are obtained for Textor also. These results indicate that the contributions from wall reflections may be large enough to significantly distort the overall spectral features of CX data, warranting an analysis at different wavelengths.

Wall reflection modeling for charge exchange recombination spectroscopy (CXRS) measurements on Textor and ITER

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Banerjee, Santanu; Vasu, P [Institute for Plasma Research, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382 428, Gujarat (India); Von Hellermann, M [FOM Institute for Plasma Physics, Rijnhuizen (Netherlands); Jaspers, R J E, E-mail: sbanerje@ipr.res.i [Applied Physics Department, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven (Netherlands)

2010-12-15

Contamination of optical signals by reflections from the tokamak vessel wall is a matter of great concern. For machines such as ITER and future reactors, where the vessel wall will be predominantly metallic, this is potentially a risk factor for quantitative optical emission spectroscopy. This is, in particular, the case when bremsstrahlung continuum radiation from the bulk plasma is used as a common reference light source for the cross-calibration of visible spectroscopy. In this paper the reflected contribution to the continuum level in Textor and ITER has been estimated for the detection channels meant for charge exchange recombination spectroscopy (CXRS). A model assuming diffuse reflection has been developed for the bremsstrahlung which is a much extended source. Based on this model, it is shown that in the case of ITER upper port 3, a wall with a moderate reflectivity of 20% leads to the wall reflected fraction being as high as 55-60% of the weak signals in the edge channels. In contrast, a complete bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) based model has been developed in order to estimate the reflections from more localized sources like the charge exchange (CX) emission from a neutral beam in tokamaks. The largest signal contamination of {approx}15% is seen in the core CX channels, where the true CX signal level is much lower than that in the edge channels. Similar values are obtained for Textor also. These results indicate that the contributions from wall reflections may be large enough to significantly distort the overall spectral features of CX data, warranting an analysis at different wavelengths.

Surface charge effects in protein adsorption on nanodiamonds

Science.gov (United States)

Aramesh, M.; Shimoni, O.; Ostrikov, K.; Prawer, S.; Cervenka, J.

2015-03-01

Understanding the interaction of proteins with charged diamond nanoparticles is of fundamental importance for diverse biomedical applications. Here we present a thorough study of protein binding, adsorption kinetics and structure on strongly positively (hydrogen-terminated) and negatively (oxygen-terminated) charged nanodiamond particles using a quartz crystal microbalance by dissipation and infrared spectroscopy. By using two model proteins (bovine serum albumin and lysozyme) of different properties (charge, molecular weight and rigidity), the main driving mechanism responsible for the protein binding to the charged nanoparticles was identified. Electrostatic interactions were found to dominate the protein adsorption dynamics, attachment and conformation. We developed a simple electrostatic model that can qualitatively explain the observed adsorption behaviour based on charge-induced pH modifications near the charged nanoparticle surfaces. Under neutral conditions, the local pH around the positively and negatively charged nanodiamonds becomes very high (11-12) and low (1-3) respectively, which has a profound impact on the protein charge, hydration and affinity to the nanodiamonds. Small proteins (lysozyme) were found to form multilayers with significant conformational changes to screen the surface charge, while larger proteins (albumin) formed monolayers with minor conformational changes. The findings of this study provide a step forward toward understanding and eventually predicting nanoparticle interactions with biofluids.Understanding the interaction of proteins with charged diamond nanoparticles is of fundamental importance for diverse biomedical applications. Here we present a thorough study of protein binding, adsorption kinetics and structure on strongly positively (hydrogen-terminated) and negatively (oxygen-terminated) charged nanodiamond particles using a quartz crystal microbalance by dissipation and infrared spectroscopy. By using two model proteins

Grazing incidence collisions of ions and atoms with surfaces: from charge exchange to atomic diffraction; Collisions rasantes d'ions ou d'atomes sur les surfaces: de l'echange de charge a la diffraction atomique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rousseau, P

2006-09-15

This thesis reports two studies about the interaction with insulating surfaces of keV ions or atoms under grazing incidence. The first part presents a study of charge exchange processes occurring during the interaction of singly charged ions with the surface of NaCl. In particular, by measuring the scattered charge fraction and the energy loss in coincidence with electron emission, the neutralization mechanism is determined for S{sup +}, C{sup +}, Xe{sup +}, H{sup +}, O{sup +}, Kr{sup +}, N{sup +}, Ar{sup +}, F{sup +}, Ne{sup +} and He{sup +}. These results show the importance of the double electron capture as neutralization process for ions having too much potential energy for resonant capture and not enough for Auger neutralization. We have also studied the ionisation of the projectile and of the surface, and the different Auger-like neutralization processes resulting in electron emission, population of conduction band or excited state. For oxygen scattering, we have measured an higher electron yield in coincidence with scattered negative ion than with scattered atom suggesting the transient formation above the surface of the oxygen doubly negative ion. The second study deals with the fast atom diffraction, a new phenomenon observed for the first time during this work. Due to the large parallel velocity, the surface appears as a corrugated wall where rows interfere. Similarly to the Thermal Atom Scattering the diffraction pattern corresponds to the surface potential and is sensitive to vibrations. We have study the H-NaCl and He-LiF atom-surface potentials in the 20 meV - 1 eV range. This new method offers interesting perspectives for surface characterisation. (author)

DETERMINATION OF SURFACE CHARGE DENSITY OF α ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

a

The whole set up was interfaced with a computer for easy data acquisition. It was observed that ... parameters. KEY WORDS: Alumina, Surface charge density, Acid-base titration, Point of zero charge ... For instance, Al2(SO4)3 is used in water ...

On the theoretical description of weakly charged surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Rui; Wang, Zhen-Gang

2015-03-14

It is widely accepted that the Poisson-Boltzmann (PB) theory provides a valid description for charged surfaces in the so-called weak coupling limit. Here, we show that the image charge repulsion creates a depletion boundary layer that cannot be captured by a regular perturbation approach. The correct weak-coupling theory must include the self-energy of the ion due to the image charge interaction. The image force qualitatively alters the double layer structure and properties, and gives rise to many non-PB effects, such as nonmonotonic dependence of the surface energy on concentration and charge inversion. In the presence of dielectric discontinuity, there is no limiting condition for which the PB theory is valid.

Charge exchange signatures in x-ray line emission accompanying plasma-wall interaction

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Renner, Oldřich; Dalimier, E.; Liska, R.; Oks, E.; Šmíd, Michal

2012-01-01

Roč. 397, č. 1 (2012), s. 1-6 ISSN 1742-6588 R&D Projects: GA ČR GAP205/10/0814; GA ČR GAP208/10/2302; GA AV ČR IAAX00100903 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10100523 Keywords : laser-produced plasma * particle jets generation * plasma-wall interaction * x-ray spectroscopy * charge exchange Subject RIV: BL - Plasma and Gas Discharge Physics

The control mechanism of surface traps on surface charge behavior in alumina-filled epoxy composites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Chuanyang; Hu, Jun; Lin, Chuanjie; He, Jinliang

2016-01-01

To investigate the role surface traps play in the charge injection and transfer behavior of alumina-filled epoxy composites, surface traps with different trap levels are introduced by different surface modification methods which include dielectric barrier discharges plasma, direct fluorination, and Cr 2 O 3 coating. The resulting surface physicochemical characteristics of experimental samples were observed using atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The surface potential under dc voltage was detected and the trap level distribution was measured. The results suggest that the surface morphology of the experimental samples differs dramatically after treatment with different surface modification methods. Different surface trap distributions directly determine the charge injection and transfer property along the surface. Shallow traps with trap level of 1.03–1.11 eV and 1.06–1.13 eV introduced by plasma and fluorination modifications are conducive for charge transport along the insulating surface, and the surface potential can be modified, producing a smoother potential curve. The Cr 2 O 3 coating can introduce a large number of deep traps with energy levels ranging from 1.09 to 1.15 eV. These can prevent charge injection through the reversed electric field formed by intensive trapped charges in the Cr 2 O 3 coatings. (paper)

Experimental investigations on the performance of a collector–storage wall system using phase change materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Guobing; Pang, Mengmeng

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Performance of collector–storage wall using PCM was experimentally studied. • PCM surface temperature rises steep–slow–steep successively during charge. • After sharp drops, PCM surface temperature decreases slightly during discharge. • Temperatures of gap air, glazing and room vary with PCM surface temperature. • Air flow rate and heating rate fluctuate during charge but go steady after discharge. - Abstract: Experiments have been performed on the thermal behavior of a collector–storage wall system using PCM (phase change material). PCM slabs were attached on the gap-side wall surface to increase the heat storage. The test was carried out for a whole day with charging period of 6.5 h and discharging period of 17.5 h, respectively. Wall and air temperatures as well as air velocity in the gap were measured for analysis. The results showed that the PCM surface temperature increases first rapidly, then slowly and rapidly again during the charging process, which in turn corresponds with the three storage stages: sensible heat (solid), latent heat (melting) and sensible heat (liquid), respectively; while in the discharging process the PCM surface temperature decreases slightly shortly after the initial sharp drops, which suggests the long time period of solidification for PCM to release latent heat. Subject to the variations of PCM surface temperatures, similar trends were also found for the gap air temperatures, glazing temperature and indoor temperature. Both the air flow rate and heating rate by air circulation have up and down fluctuations during the charging period, and then, shortly after initial sharp drops, they keep at nearly steady values during the discharging period. The indoor temperature was found to be above 22 °C during the whole discharging period (17.5 h) under present conditions, which indicates that the indoor thermal comfort could be kept for a long time by using PCM in collector–storage wall system.

Strong coupling electrostatics for randomly charged surfaces: antifragility and effective interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Ghodrat, Malihe; Naji, Ali; Komaie-Moghaddam, Haniyeh; Podgornik, Rudolf

2015-05-07

We study the effective interaction mediated by strongly coupled Coulomb fluids between dielectric surfaces carrying quenched, random monopolar charges with equal mean and variance, both when the Coulomb fluid consists only of mobile multivalent counterions and when it consists of an asymmetric ionic mixture containing multivalent and monovalent (salt) ions in equilibrium with an aqueous bulk reservoir. We analyze the consequences that follow from the interplay between surface charge disorder, dielectric and salt image effects, and the strong electrostatic coupling that results from multivalent counterions on the distribution of these ions and the effective interaction pressure they mediate between the surfaces. In a dielectrically homogeneous system, we show that the multivalent counterions are attracted towards the surfaces with a singular, disorder-induced potential that diverges logarithmically on approach to the surfaces, creating a singular but integrable counterion density profile that exhibits an algebraic divergence at the surfaces with an exponent that depends on the surface charge (disorder) variance. This effect drives the system towards a state of lower thermal 'disorder', one that can be described by a renormalized temperature, exhibiting thus a remarkable antifragility. In the presence of an interfacial dielectric discontinuity, the singular behavior of counterion density at the surfaces is removed but multivalent counterions are still accumulated much more strongly close to randomly charged surfaces as compared with uniformly charged ones. The interaction pressure acting on the surfaces displays in general a highly non-monotonic behavior as a function of the inter-surface separation with a prominent regime of attraction at small to intermediate separations. This attraction is caused directly by the combined effects from charge disorder and strong coupling electrostatics of multivalent counterions, which dominate the surface-surface repulsion due to

Effects of image charges, interfacial charge discreteness, and surface roughness on the zeta potential of spherical electric double layers.

Science.gov (United States)

Gan, Zecheng; Xing, Xiangjun; Xu, Zhenli

2012-07-21

We investigate the effects of image charges, interfacial charge discreteness, and surface roughness on spherical electric double layer structures in electrolyte solutions with divalent counterions in the setting of the primitive model. By using Monte Carlo simulations and the image charge method, the zeta potential profile and the integrated charge distribution function are computed for varying surface charge strengths and salt concentrations. Systematic comparisons were carried out between three distinct models for interfacial charges: (1) SURF1 with uniform surface charges, (2) SURF2 with discrete point charges on the interface, and (3) SURF3 with discrete interfacial charges and finite excluded volume. By comparing the integrated charge distribution function and the zeta potential profile, we argue that the potential at the distance of one ion diameter from the macroion surface is a suitable location to define the zeta potential. In SURF2 model, we find that image charge effects strongly enhance charge inversion for monovalent interfacial charges, and strongly suppress charge inversion for multivalent interfacial charges. For SURF3, the image charge effect becomes much smaller. Finally, with image charges in action, we find that excluded volumes (in SURF3) suppress charge inversion for monovalent interfacial charges and enhance charge inversion for multivalent interfacial charges. Overall, our results demonstrate that all these aspects, i.e., image charges, interfacial charge discreteness, their excluding volumes, have significant impacts on zeta potentials of electric double layers.

Surface charge effects in protein adsorption on nanodiamonds.

Science.gov (United States)

Aramesh, M; Shimoni, O; Ostrikov, K; Prawer, S; Cervenka, J

2015-03-19

Understanding the interaction of proteins with charged diamond nanoparticles is of fundamental importance for diverse biomedical applications. Here we present a thorough study of protein binding, adsorption kinetics and structure on strongly positively (hydrogen-terminated) and negatively (oxygen-terminated) charged nanodiamond particles using a quartz crystal microbalance by dissipation and infrared spectroscopy. By using two model proteins (bovine serum albumin and lysozyme) of different properties (charge, molecular weight and rigidity), the main driving mechanism responsible for the protein binding to the charged nanoparticles was identified. Electrostatic interactions were found to dominate the protein adsorption dynamics, attachment and conformation. We developed a simple electrostatic model that can qualitatively explain the observed adsorption behaviour based on charge-induced pH modifications near the charged nanoparticle surfaces. Under neutral conditions, the local pH around the positively and negatively charged nanodiamonds becomes very high (11-12) and low (1-3) respectively, which has a profound impact on the protein charge, hydration and affinity to the nanodiamonds. Small proteins (lysozyme) were found to form multilayers with significant conformational changes to screen the surface charge, while larger proteins (albumin) formed monolayers with minor conformational changes. The findings of this study provide a step forward toward understanding and eventually predicting nanoparticle interactions with biofluids.

Effect of surface topography and morphology on space charge packets in polyethylene

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou Yuanxiang; Wang Yunshan; Sun Qinghua; Wang Ninghua

2009-01-01

Polyethylene (PE) is a major kind of internal insulating material. With great progresses of space charge measurement technologies in the last three decades, lots of researches are focused on space charge in PE. The heat pressing and annealing condition of polyethylene affect its morphology obviously. During the heat pressing, the surface of PE forms different surface topographies because of different substrate materials. Surface topography has great relation to the epitaxial crystallization layer and influences the space charge characteristic of PE dramatically. This paper studied the formation process of different surface topographies and their micrographic characters in low density polyethylene (LDPE). pulsed electro-acoustic (PEA) method was used to measure the space charge distribution of samples with different surface topographies and morphologies in LDPE. The effect of surface topography and morphology to space charge packet were studied. The surface topography has great influence on space charge packet polarity and morphology has influence on both movement speed rate and polarity of space charge packet.

On the charge transfer between single-walled carbon nanotubes and graphene

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rao, Rahul; Pierce, Neal; Dasgupta, Archi

2014-01-01

It is important to understand the electronic interaction between single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) and graphene in order to use them efficiently in multifunctional hybrid devices. Here, we deposited SWNT bundles on graphene-covered copper and SiO 2 substrates by chemical vapor deposition and investigated the charge transfer between them by Raman spectroscopy. Our results revealed that, on both copper and SiO 2 substrates, graphene donates electrons to the SWNTs, resulting in p-type doped graphene and n-type doped SWNTs.

Plasmon excitation in single wall carbon nanotubes by penetrating charged particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Segui, Silvina; Gervasoni, Juana L; Arista, Néstor R; Mowbray, Duncan J; Mišković, Zoran L

2012-01-01

In this work we study the excitation of plasmons due to the incidence of a charged particle passing through a single wall carbon nanotube. We use a quantized hydrodynamic, in which the σ and π electrons characteristic of these carbonaceous structures are depicted as two interacting 2-dimensional fluids, to calculate the average number of plasmons excited. We analyze the contribution of the different plasmon modes in a variety of configurations, and study the energy lost by the incident particle.

Static phenomena at the charged surface of liquid hydrogen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Levchenko, A.A.; Kolmakov, G.V.; Mezhov-Deglin, L.P.; Mikhjlov, M.G.; Trusov, A.B.

1999-01-01

The shape evolution of the equipotentially charged surface of liquid hydrogen layer covering the lower plate of a horizontally arranged diode in external electric fields has been studied experimentally for the first time. A reconstruction phenomenon (the formation of a stationary hump) at the flat charged surface at voltages higher than a certain critical U c1 was observed under the conditions of total compensation of the electric field in the bulk liquid by a surface charge. It is shown that the transition of the flat charged surface into the reconstructed state is a phase transition closed to the second order phase transition. The height of the hump increased with increasing the voltage and at U c2 > 1,2 U c1 the reconstructed surface lost the stability, and a stream discharge pulse was observed. The shape evolution of a changed droplet of constant volume suspended at the upper plate of the diode when the stretching electric field and gravity forces act in the same direction was studied as the voltage was increased up to the discharge

A fundamental study of fission product deposition on the wall surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishiguro, R.; Sakashita, H.; Sugiyama, K.

1987-01-01

Deposition of soluble matters on wall surfaces is studied in the present report for the purpose to understand a mechanism of fission product deposition on the wall surface in a molten salt reactor. Calcium carbonate solution is used to observe the fundamental mechanism of deposition. The experiments are performed under conditions of turbulent flow of the solution over a heated wall. According to the experimental results a model is proposed to estimate deposition rate. The model consists of two parts, one is the initial nucleus formation on a clean wall surface and the other is the constant increase of deposition succeeding to the first stage. The model is assessed by comparing it with the experimental results. Both results coincide well in some parameters, but not so well in others. (author)

Charge and softness of the outer part of the cell wall of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans in the low ionic strength medium

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Škvarla Jiří

2002-03-01

Full Text Available The surface charge and surface potential are parameters influencing the microbial adhesion phenomenon through the electrostatic interaction between bacteria and substrates. The Smoluchowski equation, originally developed for estimating the above parameters from the experimentally accessible electrophoretic mobility of rigid colloid particles, is however inapplicable to the elastic bacterial cells. The problem is that the outer cell wall of bacteria is a layer with a complex polyelectrolyte structure. In this article, the OhshimaLs model of the gsofth particle is applied to describe the surface electrostatics of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans cells by measuring their electrophoretic mobility in distilled water as a function of a (low ionic strength and pH. In this model, the rigid core is considered to be covered with a charged ion-penetrable layer of polyelectrolytes. Two model parameters have been determined by the curve fitting at pH from 3.2 to 5.8, namely the number density of the dissociated groups N and the softness parameter 1/ƒÉ of the polyelectrolyte layer of the bacterium. A disagreement of the best fit parameters (evaluated by the correlation coefficient with the analogous parameters determined for other colloids (including bacterial cells in aqueous solutions of a high ionic strength is discussed.

Theory of the surface dipole layer and of surface tension in liquids of charged particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Senatore, G.; Tosi, M.P.

1980-01-01

The problem of the surface density profiles and of the surface tension of a two-component liquid of charged particles in equilibrium with its vapour is examined. The exact equilibrium conditions for the profiles are given in terms of the inverse response functions of the inhomogeneous fluid, and alternative exact expressions for the surface tension are derived. The use of a density gradient expansion reduces the problem to knowledge of properties of a homogeneous charged fluid on a uniform neutralizing background, in which the total particle density and the charge density are independent variables. Additional simplifications are discussed for special cases for which a perturbative treatment of the surface charge density profile can be developed, and in particular for nearly symmetric ionic liquids and for simple liquid metals. (author)

Metastable states of plasma particles close to a charged surface

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shavlov, A. V., E-mail: shavlov@ikz.ru [The Institute of the Earth Cryosphere, RAS Siberian branch, 625000, P.O. 1230, Tyumen (Russian Federation); Tyumen State Oil and Gas University, 38, Volodarskogo St., 625000, Tyumen (Russian Federation); Dzhumandzhi, V. A. [The Institute of the Earth Cryosphere, RAS Siberian branch, 625000, P.O. 1230, Tyumen (Russian Federation)

2015-09-15

The free energy of the plasma particles and the charged surface that form an electroneutral system is calculated on the basis of the Poisson-Boltzmann equation. It is shown that, owing to correlation of light plasma particles near the charged surface and close to heavy particles of high charge, there can be metastable states in plasma. The corresponding phase charts of metastable states of the separate components of plasma, and plasma as a whole, are constructed. These charts depend on temperature, the charge magnitude, the size of the particles, and the share of the charge of the light carriers out of the total charge of the plasma particles.

Direct quantification of negatively charged functional groups on membrane surfaces

KAUST Repository

Tiraferri, Alberto

2012-02-01

Surface charge plays an important role in membrane-based separations of particulates, macromolecules, and dissolved ionic species. In this study, we present two experimental methods to determine the concentration of negatively charged functional groups at the surface of dense polymeric membranes. Both techniques consist of associating the membrane surface moieties with chemical probes, followed by quantification of the bound probes. Uranyl acetate and toluidine blue O dye, which interact with the membrane functional groups via complexation and electrostatic interaction, respectively, were used as probes. The amount of associated probes was quantified using liquid scintillation counting for uranium atoms and visible light spectroscopy for the toluidine blue dye. The techniques were validated using self-assembled monolayers of alkanethiols with known amounts of charged moieties. The surface density of negatively charged functional groups of hand-cast thin-film composite polyamide membranes, as well as commercial cellulose triacetate and polyamide membranes, was quantified under various conditions. Using both techniques, we measured a negatively charged functional group density of 20-30nm -2 for the hand-cast thin-film composite membranes. The ionization behavior of the membrane functional groups, determined from measurements with toluidine blue at varying pH, was consistent with published data for thin-film composite polyamide membranes. Similarly, the measured charge densities on commercial membranes were in general agreement with previous investigations. The relative simplicity of the two methods makes them a useful tool for quantifying the surface charge concentration of a variety of surfaces, including separation membranes. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.

Local wall power loading variations in thermonuclear fusion devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carroll, M.C.; Miley, G.H.

1989-01-01

A 2 1/2-dimensional geometric model is presented that allows calculation of power loadings at various points on the first wall of a thermonuclear fusion device. Given average wall power loadings for brems-strahlung, cyclotron radiation charged particles, and neutrons, which are determined from various plasma-physics computation models, local wall heat loads are calculated by partitioning the plasma volume and surface into cells and superimposing the heating effects of the individual cells on selected first-wall differential areas. Heat loads from the entire plasma are thus determined as a function of position on the first-wall surface. Significant differences in local power loadings were found for most fusion designs, and it was therefore concluded that the effect of local power loading variations must be taken into account when calculating temperatures and heat transfer rates in fusion device first walls

A surface diffuse scattering model for the mobility of electrons in surface charge coupled devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ionescu, M.

1977-01-01

An analytical model for the mobility of electrons in surface charge coupled devices is studied on the basis of the results previously obtained, considering a surface diffuse scattering; the importance of the results obtained for a better understanding of the influence of the fringing field in surface charge coupled devices is discussed. (author)

Understanding colloidal charge renormalization from surface chemistry: Experiment and theory

Science.gov (United States)

Gisler, T.; Schulz, S. F.; Borkovec, M.; Sticher, H.; Schurtenberger, P.; D'Aguanno, B.; Klein, R.

1994-12-01

In this paper we report on the charging behavior of latex particles in aqueous suspensions. We use static light scattering and acid-base titrations as complementary techniques to observe both effective and bare particle charges. Acid-base titrations at various ionic strengths provide the pH dependent charging curves. The surface chemical parameters (dissociation constant of the acidic carboxylic groups, total density of ionizable sites and Stern capacitance) are determined from fits of a Stern layer model to the titration data. We find strong evidence that the dissociation of protons is the only specific adsorption process. Effective particle charges are determined by fits of integral equation calculations of the polydisperse static structure factor to the static light scattering data. A generalization of the Poisson-Boltzmann cell model including the dissociation of the acidic surface groups and the autodissociation of water is used to predict effective particle charges from the surface chemical parameters determined by the titration experiments. We find that the light scattering data are best described by a model where a small fraction of the ionizable surface sites are sulfate groups which are completely dissociated at moderate pH. These effective charges are comparable to the predictions by a basic cell model where charge regulation is absent.

Surface charges for gravity and electromagnetism in the first order formalism

Science.gov (United States)

Frodden, Ernesto; Hidalgo, Diego

2018-02-01

A new derivation of surface charges for 3  +  1 gravity coupled to electromagnetism is obtained. Gravity theory is written in the tetrad-connection variables. The general derivation starts from the Lagrangian, and uses the covariant symplectic formalism in the language of forms. For gauge theories, surface charges disentangle physical from gauge symmetries through the use of Noether identities and the exactness symmetry condition. The surface charges are quasilocal, explicitly coordinate independent, gauge invariant and background independent. For a black hole family solution, the surface charge conservation implies the first law of black hole mechanics. As a check, we show the first law for an electrically charged, rotating black hole with an asymptotically constant curvature (the Kerr–Newman (anti-)de Sitter family). The charges, including the would-be mass term appearing in the first law, are quasilocal. No reference to the asymptotic structure of the spacetime nor the boundary conditions is required and therefore topological terms do not play a rôle. Finally, surface charge formulae for Lovelock gravity coupled to electromagnetism are exhibited, generalizing the one derived in a recent work by Barnich et al Proc. Workshop ‘ About Various Kinds of Interactions’ in honour of Philippe Spindel (4–5 June 2015, Mons, Belgium) C15-06-04 (2016 (arXiv:1611.01777 [gr-qc])). The two different symplectic methods to define surface charges are compared and shown equivalent.

Manipulation of near-wall turbulence by surface slip and permeability

Science.gov (United States)

Gómez-de-Segura, G.; Fairhall, C. T.; MacDonald, M.; Chung, D.; García-Mayoral, R.

2018-04-01

We study the effect on near-wall turbulence of tangential slip and wall-normal transpiration, typically produced by textured surfaces and other surface manipulations. For this, we conduct direct numerical simulations (DNSs) with different virtual origins for the different velocity components. The different origins result in a relative wall-normal displacement of the near-wall, quasi-streamwise vortices with respect to the mean flow, which in turn produces a change in drag. The objective of this work is to extend the existing understanding on how these virtual origins affect the flow. In the literature, the virtual origins for the tangential velocities are typically characterised by slip boundary conditions, while the wall-normal velocity is assumed to be zero at the boundary plane. Here we explore different techniques to define and implement the three virtual origins, with special emphasis on the wall-normal one. We investigate impedance conditions relating the wall-normal velocity to the pressure, and linear relations between the velocity components and their wall-normal gradients, as is typically done to impose slip conditions. These models are first tested to represent a smooth wall below the boundary plane, with all virtual origins equal, and later for different tangential and wall-normal origins. Our results confirm that the change in drag is determined by the offset between the origins perceived by mean flow and the quasi-streamwise vortices or, more generally, the near-wall turbulent cycle. The origin for the latter, however, is not set by the spanwise virtual origin alone, as previously proposed, but by a combination of the spanwise and wall-normal origins, and mainly determined by the shallowest of the two. These observations allow us to extend the existing expression to predict the change in drag, accounting for the wall-normal effect when the transpiration is not negligible.

Free-carrier-compensated charged domain walls produced with super-bandgap illumination in insulating ferroelectrics

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Bednyakov, Petr; Sluka, T.; Tagantsev, A.; Damjanovic, D.; Setter, N.

2016-01-01

Roč. 28, č. 43 (2016), s. 9498-9503 ISSN 0935-9648 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA15-04121S Institutional support: RVO:68378271 Keywords : super-bandgap illumination * charged domain walls * ferroelectric BaTiO 3 * free-carrier generation Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 19.791, year: 2016

Surface charge algebra in gauge theories and thermodynamic integrability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barnich, Glenn; Compere, Geoffrey

2008-01-01

Surface charges and their algebra in interacting Lagrangian gauge field theories are constructed out of the underlying linearized theory using techniques from the variational calculus. In the case of exact solutions and symmetries, the surface charges are interpreted as a Pfaff system. Integrability is governed by Frobenius' theorem and the charges associated with the derived symmetry algebra are shown to vanish. In the asymptotic context, we provide a generalized covariant derivation of the result that the representation of the asymptotic symmetry algebra through charges may be centrally extended. Comparison with Hamiltonian and covariant phase space methods is made. All approaches are shown to agree for exact solutions and symmetries while there are differences in the asymptotic context

Characterization of triboelectrically charged particles deposited on dielectric surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Nesterov, A.; Löffler, F.; Cheng, Yun-Chien; Torralba, G.; König, K.; Hausmann, M.; Lindenstruth, V.; Stadler, V.; Bischoff, F. R.; Breitling, F.

2010-04-01

A device for the measurement of q/m-values and charge degradation of triboelectrically charged particles deposited on a surface was developed. The setup is based on the integration of currents, which are induced in a Faraday cage by insertion of a solid support covered with charged particles. The conductivity of different particle supports was taken into account. The 'blow-off' method, in which the particles are first deposited, and then blown off using an air stream, can be used for characterization of triboelectric properties of particles relative to different surfaces.

Characterization of triboelectrically charged particles deposited on dielectric surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nesterov, A; Torralba, G; Hausmann, M; Lindenstruth, V [Kirchhoff Institute of Physics, In Neuenheimer Feld 227, Heidelberg (Germany); Loeffler, F; Cheng, Yun-Chien; Koenig, K; Stadler, V; Bischoff, F R [German Cancer Research Centre, In Neuenheimer Feld 280, Heidelberg (Germany); Breitling, F, E-mail: Frank.Breitling@KIT.ed, E-mail: alexander.nesterov-mueller@kit.ed [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Microstructure Technology, Herrmann von Helmholtzplatz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany)

2010-04-28

A device for the measurement of q/m-values and charge degradation of triboelectrically charged particles deposited on a surface was developed. The setup is based on the integration of currents, which are induced in a Faraday cage by insertion of a solid support covered with charged particles. The conductivity of different particle supports was taken into account. The 'blow-off' method, in which the particles are first deposited, and then blown off using an air stream, can be used for characterization of triboelectric properties of particles relative to different surfaces.

Direct measurement of sub-Debye-length attraction between oppositely charged surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Kampf, Nir; Ben-Yaakov, Dan; Andelman, David; Safran, S A; Klein, Jacob

2009-09-11

Using a surface force balance with fast video analysis, we have measured directly the attractive forces between oppositely charged solid surfaces (charge densities sigma(+), sigma(-)) across water over the entire range of interaction, in particular, at surface separations D below the Debye screening length lambda(S). At very low salt concentration we find a long-ranged attraction between the surfaces (onset ca. 100 nm), whose variation at Dsurface charge asymmetry (sigma(+) not equal to |sigma(-)|).

Geometry, charge distribution, and surface speciation of phosphate on goethite.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rahnemaie, R.; Hiemstra, T.; Riemsdijk, van W.H.

2007-01-01

The surface speciation of phosphate has been evaluated with surface complexation modeling using an interfacial charge distribution (CD) approach based on ion adsorption and ordering of interfacial water. In the CD model, the charge of adsorbed ions is distributed over two electrostatic potentials in

Navier-Stokes Computations With One-Equation Turbulence Model for Flows Along Concave Wall Surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chi R.

2005-01-01

This report presents the use of a time-marching three-dimensional compressible Navier-Stokes equation numerical solver with a one-equation turbulence model to simulate the flow fields developed along concave wall surfaces without and with a downstream extension flat wall surface. The 3-D Navier- Stokes numerical solver came from the NASA Glenn-HT code. The one-equation turbulence model was derived from the Spalart and Allmaras model. The computational approach was first calibrated with the computations of the velocity and Reynolds shear stress profiles of a steady flat plate boundary layer flow. The computational approach was then used to simulate developing boundary layer flows along concave wall surfaces without and with a downstream extension wall. The author investigated the computational results of surface friction factors, near surface velocity components, near wall temperatures, and a turbulent shear stress component in terms of turbulence modeling, computational mesh configurations, inlet turbulence level, and time iteration step. The computational results were compared with existing measurements of skin friction factors, velocity components, and shear stresses of the developing boundary layer flows. With a fine computational mesh and a one-equation model, the computational approach could predict accurately the skin friction factors, near surface velocity and temperature, and shear stress within the flows. The computed velocity components and shear stresses also showed the vortices effect on the velocity variations over a concave wall. The computed eddy viscosities at the near wall locations were also compared with the results from a two equation turbulence modeling technique. The inlet turbulence length scale was found to have little effect on the eddy viscosities at locations near the concave wall surface. The eddy viscosities, from the one-equation and two-equation modeling, were comparable at most stream-wise stations. The present one

On the physics of both surface overcharging and charge reversal at heterophase interfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zhi-Yong; Zhang, Pengli; Ma, Zengwei

2018-02-07

The conventional paradigm for characterizing surface overcharging and charge reversal is based on the so-called Stern layer, in which surface dissociation reaction and specific chemical adsorption are assumed to take place. In this article, a series of Monte Carlo simulations have been applied to obtain useful insights into the underlying physics responsible for these two kinds of anomalous phenomena at the interface of two dielectrics, with special emphasis on the case of divalent counterions that are more relevant in natural and biological environments. At a weakly charged surface, it is found that independent of the type of surface charge distribution and the dielectric response of the solution, the overcharging event is universally driven by the ion size-asymmetric effect. Exceptionally, the overcharging still persists when the surface is highly charged but is only restricted to the case of discrete surface charge in a relatively low dielectric medium. As compared to the adsorption onto the homogeneously smeared charge surface that has the same average affinity for counterions, on the other hand, charge reversal under the action of a dielectric response can be substantially enhanced in the discrete surface charge representation due to strong association of counterions with interfacial groups, and the degree of enhancement depends in a nontrivial way on the reduction of the medium dielectric constant and the steric effects of finite ion size. Rather interestingly, the charge reversal is of high relevance to the overcharging of interfaces because the overwhelming interfacial association forces the coions closer to the surface due to their smaller size than the counterions. Upon the addition of a monovalent salt to the solution, the interfacial association with divalent counterions makes surface overcharging and charge reversal widely unaffected, in contrast to the prevailing notion that screening of surface charge of a homogeneous nature is determined by the

Surface charge sensing by altering the phase transition in VO2

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, S.; Esfandyarpour, R.; Davis, R.; Nishi, Y.

2014-08-01

Detection of surface charges has various applications in medicine, electronics, biotechnology, etc. The source of surface charge induction may range from simple charge-polarized molecules like water to complicated proteins. It was recently discovered that surface charge accumulation can alter the temperature at which VO2 undergoes a Mott transition. Here, we deposited polar molecules onto the surface of two-terminal thin-film VO2 lateral devices and monitored the joule-heating-driven Mott transition, or conductance switching. We observed that the power required to induce the conductance switching reduced upon treatment with polar molecules and, using in-situ blackbody-emission direct measurement of local temperature, we show that this reduction in power was accompanied by reduction in the Mott transition temperature. Further evidence suggested that this effect has specificity to the nature of the species used to induce surface charges. Using x-ray absorption spectroscopy, we also show that there is no detectable change in oxidation state of vanadium or structural phase in the bulk of the 40 nm VO2 thin-film even as the phase transition temperature is reduced by up to 20 K by the polar molecules. The ability to alter the phase transition parameters by depositing polar molecules suggests a potential application in sensing surface charges of different origins and this set of results also highlights interesting aspects of the phase transition in VO2.

Breakdown of a Space Charge Limited Regime of a Sheath in a Weakly Collisional Plasma Bounded by Walls with Secondary Electron Emission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sydorenko, D.; Smolyakov, A.; Kaganovich, I.; Raitses, Y.

2009-01-01

A new regime of plasma-wall interaction is identified in particle-in-cell simulations of a hot plasma bounded by walls with secondary electron emission. Such a plasma has a strongly non-Maxwellian electron velocity distribution function and consists of bulk plasma electrons and beams of secondary electrons. In the new regime, the plasma sheath is not in a steady space charge limited state even though the secondary electron emission produced by the plasma bulk electrons is so intense that the corresponding partial emission coefficient exceeds unity. Instead, the plasma-sheath system performs relaxation oscillations by switching quasiperiodically between the space charge limited and non-space-charge limited states.

NTERACTION BETWEEN SURFACE CHARGE PHENOMENA AND MULTI-SPECIES DIFFUSION IN CEMENT BASED MATERIALS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Johannesson, Björn

2008-01-01

Measurements strongly indicate that the ‘inner’ surface of the microscopic structure of cement based materials has a fixed negative charge. This charge contributes to the formation of so-called electrical double layers. In the case of cement based materials the ionic species located in such layers...... are typically potassium -, sodium - and calcium ions. Due to the high specific surface area of hydrated cement, a large amount of ions can be located in theses double layers even if the surface charge is relatively low. The attraction force, caused by the fixed surface charge on ions located close to surfaces......, is one possible explanation for the observed low global diffusion rates in the pore system of positively charged ions compared to the negatively charged ones. Here it is of interest to simulate the multi ionic diffusion behavior when assigning positively charged ions a comparably lower diffusion constant...

Charge state distributions from highly charged ions channeled at a metal surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Folkerts, L.; Meyer, F.W.; Schippers, S.

1994-01-01

The vast majority of the experimental work in the field of multicharged ion-surface interactions, to date, has focused on x-ray and particularly on electron emission. These experiments include measurements of the total electron yield, the emission statistics of the electrons, and, most of all, the electron energy distributions. So far, little attention has been paid to the fate of the multicharged projectile ions after the scattering. To our knowledge, the only measurement of the charge state distribution of the scattered ions is the pioneering experiment of de Zwart et al., who measured the total yield of scattered 1+, 2+, and 3+ ions as a function of the primary charge state q (q = 1--11) for 20 key Ne, Ar, and Kr ions after reflection from a polycrystalline tungsten target. Their main finding is the sudden onset of scattered 3+ ions when inner-shell vacancies are present in the primary particles. This suggests that a certain fraction of the inner-shell vacancies survives the entire collision event, and decays via autoionization on the outgoing path. Since the projectiles scattered in the neutral charge state could not be detected in the experiment of de Zwart et al., they were not able to provide absolute charge state fractions. In our present experiment, we focus on the scattered projectiles, measuring both the final charge state and the total scattering angle with a single 2D position sensitive detector (PSD). This method gives us the number of positive, as well as neutral and negative, scattered ions, thus allowing us to extract absolute charge state fractions. Using a well-prepared single Au(110) crystal and a grazing incidence geometry, we were able to observe surface channeling along the [001] channels

Quantifying the importance of galactofuranose in Aspergillus nidulans hyphal wall surface organization by atomic force microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Paul, Biplab C; El-Ganiny, Amira M; Abbas, Mariam; Kaminskyj, Susan G W; Dahms, Tanya E S

2011-05-01

The fungal wall mediates cell-environment interactions. Galactofuranose (Galf), the five-member ring form of galactose, has a relatively low abundance in Aspergillus walls yet is important for fungal growth and fitness. Aspergillus nidulans strains deleted for Galf biosynthesis enzymes UgeA (UDP-glucose-4-epimerase) and UgmA (UDP-galactopyranose mutase) lacked immunolocalizable Galf, had growth and sporulation defects, and had abnormal wall architecture. We used atomic force microscopy and force spectroscopy to image and quantify cell wall viscoelasticity and surface adhesion of ugeAΔ and ugmAΔ strains. We compared the results for ugeAΔ and ugmAΔ strains with the results for a wild-type strain (AAE1) and the ugeB deletion strain, which has wild-type growth and sporulation. Our results suggest that UgeA and UgmA are important for cell wall surface subunit organization and wall viscoelasticity. The ugeAΔ and ugmAΔ strains had significantly larger surface subunits and lower cell wall viscoelastic moduli than those of AAE1 or ugeBΔ hyphae. Double deletion strains (ugeAΔ ugeBΔ and ugeAΔ ugmAΔ) had more-disorganized surface subunits than single deletion strains. Changes in wall surface structure correlated with changes in its viscoelastic modulus for both fixed and living hyphae. Wild-type walls had the largest viscoelastic modulus, while the walls of the double deletion strains had the smallest. The ugmAΔ strain and particularly the ugeAΔ ugmAΔ double deletion strain were more adhesive to hydrophilic surfaces than the wild type, consistent with changes in wall viscoelasticity and surface organization. We propose that Galf is necessary for full maturation of A. nidulans walls during hyphal extension.

Characterization of surface charge and mechanical properties of chitosan/alginate based biomaterials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Verma, Devendra; Desai, Malav S.; Kulkarni, Namrata; Langrana, Noshir

2011-01-01

This study aims to examine mechanical properties and surface charge characteristics of chitosan/alginate-based films for biomedical applications. By varying the concentrations of chitosan and alginate, we have developed films with varying surface charge densities and mechanical characteristics. The surface charge densities of these films were determined by applying an analytical model on force curves derived from an atomic force microscope (AFM). The average surface charge densities of films containing 60% chitosan and 80% chitosan were found to be - 0.46 mC/m 2 and - 0.32 mC/m 2 , respectively. The surface charge density of 90% chitosan containing films was found to be neutral. The elastic moduli and the water content were found to be decreasing with increasing chitosan concentration. The films with 60%, 80% and 90% chitosan gained 93.5 ± 6.6%, 217.1 ± 22.1% and 396.8 ± 67.5% of their initial weight, respectively. Their elastic moduli were found to be 2.6 ± 0.14 MPa, 1.9 ± 0.27 MPa and 0.93 ± 0.12 MPa, respectively. The trend observed in the mechanical response of these films has been attributed to the combined effect of the concentration of polyelectrolyte complexes (PEC) and the amount of water absorbed. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy experiments indicate the presence of higher alginate on the surface of the films compared to the bulk in all films. The presence of higher alginate on surface is consistent with negative surface charge densities of these films, determined from AFM experiments. Highlights: → Chitosan/alginate based fibrous polyelectrolyte complex films were developed. → The average surface charge density of the films was determined using AFM. → Elastic modulus of the films increased with increase in PEC content. → FTIR analysis indicated higher alginate content on surface compared to bulk.

An assessment for the erosion rate of DEMO first wall

Science.gov (United States)

Tokar, M. Z.

2018-01-01

In a fusion reactor a significant fraction of plasma particles lost from the confined volume will reach the vessel wall. The recombination of these charged species, electrons and ions of hydrogen isotopes, is a source of neutral molecules and atoms, recycling back into the plasma. Here they participate, in particular, in charge-exchange (c-x) collisions with the plasma ions and, as a result, atoms of high energies with chaotically oriented velocities are generated. A significant fraction of these hot neutrals will hit the wall, leading, as well as the outflowing fuel and impurity ions, to its erosion, limiting the reactor operation time. The rate of the wall erosion in DEMO is assessed by applying a one-dimensional model which takes into account the transport of charged and neutral species across the flux surfaces in the main part of the scrape-off layer, beyond the X-point vicinity and divertor, and by considering the shift of the centers of flux surfaces, their elongation and triangularity. Atoms generated by c-x of recycling neutrals are modeled kinetically to define firmly their energy spectrum, being of particular importance for the erosion assessment. It is demonstrated the erosion rate of the DEMO wall armor of tungsten will have a pronounced ballooning character with a significant maximum of 0.3 mm per full power year at the low field side, decreasing with an increase in the anomalous perpendicular transport in the ‘far’ SOL or the plasma density at the separatrix.

Screening model for nanowire surface-charge sensors in liquid

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Martin Hedegård; Mortensen, Asger; Brandbyge, Mads

2007-01-01

The conductance change of nanowire field-effect transistors is considered a highly sensitive probe for surface charge. However, Debye screening of relevant physiological liquid environments challenge device performance due to competing screening from the ionic liquid and nanowire charge carriers....

Scattered surface charge density: A tool for surface characterization

KAUST Repository

Naydenov, Borislav

2011-11-28

We demonstrate the use of nonlocal scanning tunneling spectroscopic measurements to characterize the local structure of adspecies in their states where they are significantly less perturbed by the probe, which is accomplished by mapping the amplitude and phase of the scattered surface charge density. As an example, we study single-H-atom adsorption on the n-type Si(100)-(4 × 2) surface, and demonstrate the existence of two different configurations that are distinguishable using the nonlocal approach and successfully corroborated by density functional theory. © 2011 American Physical Society.

Scattered surface charge density: A tool for surface characterization

KAUST Repository

Naydenov, Borislav; Mantega, Mauro; Rungger, Ivan; Sanvito, Stefano; Boland, John J.

2011-01-01

We demonstrate the use of nonlocal scanning tunneling spectroscopic measurements to characterize the local structure of adspecies in their states where they are significantly less perturbed by the probe, which is accomplished by mapping the amplitude and phase of the scattered surface charge density. As an example, we study single-H-atom adsorption on the n-type Si(100)-(4 × 2) surface, and demonstrate the existence of two different configurations that are distinguishable using the nonlocal approach and successfully corroborated by density functional theory. © 2011 American Physical Society.

Influence of nanopore surface charge and magnesium ion on polyadenosine translocation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lepoitevin, Mathilde; Bechelany, Mikhael; Janot, Jean-Marc; Balme, Sebastien; Coulon, Pierre Eugène; Cambedouzou, Julien

2015-01-01

We investigate the influence of a nanopore surface state and the addition of Mg 2+ on poly-adenosine translocation. To do so, two kinds of nanopores with a low aspect ratio (diameter ∼3–5 nm, length 30 nm) were tailored: the first one with a negative charge surface and the second one uncharged. It was shown that the velocity and the energy barrier strongly depend on the nanopore surface. Typically if the nanopore and polyA exhibit a similar charge, the macromolecule velocity increases and its global energy barrier of entrance in the nanopore decreases, as opposed to the non-charged nanopore. Moreover, the addition of a divalent chelating cation induces an increase of energy barrier of entrance, as expected. However, for a negative nanopore, this effect is counterbalanced by the inversion of the surface charge induced by the adsorption of divalent cations. (paper)

Charge-exchange wall physical erosion rates for a proposed INTOR/FED limiter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heifetz, D.; Schmidt, J.; Ulrickson, M.; Post, D.

1983-01-01

We have analyzed power deposition and physical erosion rates on the first wall and limiter due to charge-exchange neutrals in a proposed pump limiter design for the INTOR/FED tokamak. Plasma conditions were modeled using the one-dimensional plasma transport code baldur. Neutral transport was modeled using a two-dimensional, multispecies Monte Carlo algorithm. No chemical erosion or wall redeposition processes were included. Two possible plasma discharges with different edge densities and temperatures were modeled, a regime with T/sub e/ approx.300 eV and napprox.5 x 10 12 cm - 3 , and a hotter, less dense edge regime produced with pellet fueling. We found that the erosion of the stainless steel vacuum vessel wall was highly localized in each case to the two points just beyond the limiter tips, and to the point directly across from the neutralizer plate, with peak erosion rates approx.2 cm/yr, assuming a 40% duty cycle. The erosion of a carbon limiter, neglecting redeposition and chemical erosion, varied in the two cases from 1.6--4 cm/yr, for the same duty cycle. The hotter, less dense discharge produced less sputtering. However achieving truly tolerable physical sputtering rates may require a very low edge temperature, plasma

X-ray emission in slow highly charged ion-surface collisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watanabe, H; Abe, T; Fujita, Y; Sun, J; Takahashi, S; Tona, M; Yoshiyasu, N; Nakamura, N; Sakurai, M; Yamada, C; Ohtani, S

2007-01-01

X-rays emitted in the collisions of highly charged ions with a surface have been measured to investigate dissipation schemes of their potential energies. While 8.1% of the potential energy was dissipated in the collisions of He-like I ions with a W surface, 29.1% has been dissipated in the case of He-like Bi ions. The x-ray emissions play significant roles in the dissipation of the potential energies in the interaction of highly charged heavy ions with the surface

The interplay between surface charging and microscale roughness during plasma etching of polymeric substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Memos, George; Lidorikis, Elefterios; Kokkoris, George

2018-02-01

The surface roughness developed during plasma etching of polymeric substrates is critical for a variety of applications related to the wetting behavior and the interaction of surfaces with cells. Toward the understanding and, ultimately, the manipulation of plasma induced surface roughness, the interplay between surface charging and microscale roughness of polymeric substrates is investigated by a modeling framework consisting of a surface charging module, a surface etching model, and a profile evolution module. The evolution of initially rough profiles during plasma etching is calculated by taking into account as well as by neglecting charging. It is revealed, on the one hand, that the surface charging contributes to the suppression of root mean square roughness and, on the other hand, that the decrease of the surface roughness induces a decrease of the charging potential. The effect of charging on roughness is intense when the etching yield depends solely on the ion energy, and it is mitigated when the etching yield additionally depends on the angle of ion incidence. The charging time, i.e., the time required for reaching a steady state charging potential, is found to depend on the thickness of the polymeric substrate, and it is calculated in the order of milliseconds.

Interaction of singly and multiply charged ions with a lithium-fluoride surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wirtz, L.

2001-10-01

Charge transfer between slow ions and an ionic crystal surface still poses a considerable challenge to theory due to the intrinsic many-body character of the system. For the neutralization of multiply charged ions in front of metal surfaces, the Classical Over the Barrier (COB) model is a widely used tool. We present an extension of this model to ionic crystal surfaces where the localization of valence electrons at the anion sites and the lack of cylindrical symmetry of the ion-surface system impede a simple analytical estimate of electron transfer rates. We use a classical trajectory Monte Carlo approach to calculate electron transfer rates for different charge states of the projectile ion. With these rates we perform a Monte Carlo simulation of the neutralization of slow Ne10+ ions in vertical incidence on an LiF surface. Capture of one or several electrons may lead to a local positive charge up of the surface. The projectile dynamics depends on the balance between the repulsion due to this charge and the attraction due to the self-image potential. In a simulation that treats electronic and nuclear dynamics simultaneously, we show that the image attraction dominates over the repulsive force. Backscattering of very slow multiply charged projectiles high above the surface without touching it ('trampoline effect') does not take place. Instead, the projectile ion penetrates into the surface or is reflected due to close binary collision with surface ions. The case of a singly charged ion in front of an LiF surface is within the reach of ab-initio calculations. We use a multi-configuration self consistent field (MCSCF) and a multi-reference configuration interaction (MR-CI) method to calculate adiabatic potential energy curves for a system consisting of the projectile ion and an embedded cluster of surface ions. With increasing cluster size, the energy levels of the embedded cluster converge towards the band structure of the infinitely extended solid. Due to

Surface condition effects on tritium permeation through the first wall of a water-cooled ceramic breeder blanket

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, H.-S. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 1126, Hefei (China); Xu, Y.-P.; Liu, H.-D. [Science Island Branch of Graduate School, University of Science and Technology of China, P.O. Box 1126, Hefei (China); Liu, F.; Li, X.-C.; Zhao, M.-Z.; Qi, Q.; Ding, F. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 1126, Hefei (China); Luo, G.-N., E-mail: gnluo@ipp.ac.cn [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 1126, Hefei (China); Science Island Branch of Graduate School, University of Science and Technology of China, P.O. Box 1126, Hefei (China); Hefei Center for Physical Science and Technology, P.O. Box 1126, Hefei (China); Hefei Science Center of Chinese Academy of Science, P.O. Box 1126, Hefei (China)

2016-11-01

Highlights: • We investigate surface effects on T transport through the first wall. • We solve transport equations with various surface conditions. • The RAFMs walls w/and w/o W exhibit different T permeation behavior. • Diffusion in W has been found to be the rate-limiting step. - Abstract: Plasma-driven permeation of tritium (T) through the first wall of a water-cooled ceramic breeder (WCCB) blanket may raise safety and other issues. In the present work, surface effects on T transport through the first wall of a WCCB blanket have been investigated by theoretical calculation. Two types of wall structures, i.e., reduced activation ferritic/martensitic steels (RAFMs) walls with and without tungsten (W) armor, have been analyzed. Surface recombination is assumed to be the boundary condition for both the plasma-facing side and the coolant side. It has been found that surface conditions at both sides can affect T permeation flux and inventory. For the first wall using W as armor material, T permeation is not sensitive to the plasma-facing surface conditions. Contamination of the surfaces will lead to higher T inventory inside the first wall.

Including diverging electrostatic potential in 3D-RISM theory: The charged wall case

Science.gov (United States)

Vyalov, Ivan; Rocchia, Walter

2018-03-01

Although three-dimensional site-site molecular integral equations of liquids are a powerful tool of the modern theoretical chemistry, their applications to the problem of characterizing the electrical double layer originating at the solid-liquid interface with a macroscopic substrate are severely limited by the fact that an infinitely extended charged plane generates a divergent electrostatic potential. Such potentials cannot be treated within the standard 3D-Reference Interaction Site Model equation solution framework since it leads to functions that are not Fourier transformable. In this paper, we apply a renormalization procedure to overcome this obstacle. We then check the validity and numerical accuracy of the proposed computational scheme on the prototypical gold (111) surface in contact with water/alkali chloride solution. We observe that despite the proposed method requires, to achieve converged charge densities, a higher spatial resolution than that suited to the estimation of biomolecular solvation with either 3D-RISM or continuum electrostatics approaches, it still is computationally efficient. Introducing the electrostatic potential of an infinite wall, which is periodic in 2 dimensions, we avoid edge effects, permit a robust integration of Poisson's equation, and obtain the 3D electrostatic potential profile for the first time in such calculations. We show that the potential within the electrical double layer presents oscillations which are not grasped by the Debye-Hückel and Gouy-Chapman theories. This electrostatic potential deviates from its average of up to 1-2 V at small distances from the substrate along the lateral directions. Applications of this theoretical development are relevant, for example, for liquid scanning tunneling microscopy imaging.

Surface charge method for molecular surfaces with curved areal elements I. Spherical triangles

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Yi-Kuo

2018-03-01

Parametrizing a curved surface with flat triangles in electrostatics problems creates a diverging electric field. One way to avoid this is to have curved areal elements. However, charge density integration over curved patches appears difficult. This paper, dealing with spherical triangles, is the first in a series aiming to solve this problem. Here, we lay the ground work for employing curved patches for applying the surface charge method to electrostatics. We show analytically how one may control the accuracy by expanding in powers of the the arc length (multiplied by the curvature). To accommodate not extremely small curved areal elements, we have provided enough details to include higher order corrections that are needed for better accuracy when slightly larger surface elements are used.

Results obtained during wall breaching research

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Hattingh, S

2008-11-01

Full Text Available To understand the physics of what is happening inside the wall directly after the detonation and the application of this knowledge in the improvement of the charge Measure the shock/stress waves in the masonry material and then in the wall as a whole... to maximise the effect of the charges on the walls and to broaden the knowledge of the physics of shock and stress waves. The thickness and characteristics of walls are not usually known in an operation. The effect of the charges on real buildings is still...

Numerical modelling of needle-grid electrodes for negative surface corona charging system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhuang, Y; Chen, G; Rotaru, M

2011-01-01

Surface potential decay measurement is a simple and low cost tool to examine electrical properties of insulation materials. During the corona charging stage, a needle-grid electrodes system is often used to achieve uniform charge distribution on the surface of the sample. In this paper, a model using COMSOL Multiphysics has been developed to simulate the gas discharge. A well-known hydrodynamic drift-diffusion model was used. The model consists of a set of continuity equations accounting for the movement, generation and loss of charge carriers (electrons, positive and negative ions) coupled with Poisson's equation to take into account the effect of space and surface charges on the electric field. Four models with the grid electrode in different positions and several mesh sizes are compared with a model that only has the needle electrode. The results for impulse current and surface charge density on the sample clearly show the effect of the extra grid electrode with various positions.

Ion distributions at charged aqueous surfaces: Synchrotron X-ray scattering studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bu, Wei [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

2009-01-01

Surface sensitive synchrotron X-ray scattering studies were performed to obtain the distribution of monovalent ions next to a highly charged interface at room temperature. To control surface charge density, lipids, dihexadecyl hydrogen-phosphate (DHDP) and dimysteroyl phosphatidic acid (DMPA), were spread as monolayer materials at the air/water interface, containing CsI at various concentrations. Five decades in bulk concentrations (CsI) are investigated, demonstrating that the interfacial distribution is strongly dependent on bulk concentration. We show that this is due to the strong binding constant of hydronium H3O+ to the phosphate group, leading to proton-transfer back to the phosphate group and to a reduced surface charge. Using anomalous reflectivity off and at the L3 Cs+ resonance, we provide spatial counterion (Cs+) distributions next to the negatively charged interfaces. The experimental ion distributions are in excellent agreement with a renormalized surface charge Poisson-Boltzmann theory for monovalent ions without fitting parameters or additional assumptions. Energy Scans at four fixed momentum transfers under specular reflectivity conditions near the Cs+ L3 resonance were conducted on 10-3 M CsI with DHDP monolayer materials on the surface. The energy scans exhibit a periodic dependence on photon momentum transfer. The ion distributions obtained from the analysis are in excellent agreement with those obtained from anomalous reflectivity measurements, providing further confirmation to the validity of the renormalized surface charge Poisson-Boltzmann theory for monovalent ions. Moreover, the dispersion corrections f0 and f00 for Cs+ around L3 resonance, revealing the local environment of a Cs+ ion in the solution at the interface, were extracted simultaneously with output of ion distributions.

Adsorption of charged albumin subdomains on a graphite surface.

Science.gov (United States)

Raffaini, Giuseppina; Ganazzoli, Fabio

2006-03-01

We report some new molecular dynamics simulation results about the adsorption on a hydrophobic graphite surface of two albumin subdomains, each formed by three different alpha-helices, considering the correctly charged side groups at pH = 7 instead of the neutral ones as done in our previous exploratory paper (Raffaini and Ganazzoli, Langmuir 2003;19:3403-3412). We find that the presence of charges affects somewhat the initial adsorption stage on the electrostatically neutral surface, but not the final one. Thus, we recover the result that a monolayer of aminoacids is eventually formed, with a rough parallelism of distant strands to optimize both the intramolecular and the surface interactions. This feature is consistent with the adsorption on the hydrophobic surface being driven by dispersion forces only, and with the "soft" nature of albumin. Additional optimizations of the final monolayer carried out at pH = 3 and 11 do not modify appreciably this picture, suggesting that adsorption on graphite is basically independent of pH. The enhanced hydration of the final adsorption state due to the (delocalized) charges of the side groups is also discussed in comparison with similar results of the neutralized subdomains. (c) 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Oil Contact Angles in a Water-Decane-Silicon Dioxide System: Effects of Surface Charge.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Shijing; Wang, Jingyao; Wu, Jiazhong; Liu, Qingjie; Sun, Chengzhen; Bai, Bofeng

2018-04-19

Oil wettability in the water-oil-rock systems is very sensitive to the evolution of surface charges on the rock surfaces induced by the adsorption of ions and other chemical agents in water flooding. Through a set of large-scale molecular dynamics simulations, we reveal the effects of surface charge on the oil contact angles in an ideal water-decane-silicon dioxide system. The results show that the contact angles of oil nano-droplets have a great dependence on the surface charges. As the surface charge density exceeds a critical value of 0.992 e/nm 2 , the contact angle reaches up to 78.8° and the water-wet state is very apparent. The variation of contact angles can be confirmed from the number density distributions of oil molecules. With increasing the surface charge density, the adsorption of oil molecules weakens and the contact areas between nano-droplets and silicon dioxide surface are reduced. In addition, the number density distributions, RDF distributions, and molecular orientations indicate that the oil molecules are adsorbed on the silicon dioxide surface layer-by-layer with an orientation parallel to the surface. However, the layered structure of oil molecules near the silicon dioxide surface becomes more and more obscure at higher surface charge densities.

Effect of volume and surface charges on discharge structure of glow dielectric barrier discharge

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xu, Shao-Wei; He, Feng; Wang, Yu; Li, Lulu; Ouyang, Ji-Ting [School of Physics, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081 (China)

2013-08-15

The effect of volume and surface charges on the structure of glow dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) has been investigated numerically by using two-dimensional (2D) fluid modeling. The local increase of volume or surface charges induces a kind of activation-inhibition effect, which enhances the local volume discharge and inhibits the discharge in neighborhoods, resulting in non-uniform discharge. The activation-inhibition effect due to the non-uniform volume and/or surface charges depends on the non-uniformity itself and the applied voltage. The activation-inhibition of non-uniform charges has different effects on the volume charges and the accumulated surface charges. The distribution of remaining free charges (seed electrons) in volume at the beginning of voltage pulse plays a key role for the glow DBD structure, resulting in a patterned DBD, when the seed electrons are non-uniform at higher frequency and moderate voltage or uniform DBD, when the seed electrons are uniform at lower frequency or high voltage. The distribution of surface charges is not the determining factor but a result of the formed DBD structure.

Work functions and surface charges at metallic facet edges

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fall, C.J.; Binggeli, N.; Baldereschi, A.

2002-04-01

The electronic charge densities and work functions at sharp metallic facet edges are determined from ab initio calculations, combined with macroscopic averaging techniques. In particular, we examine how two different work functions coexist at close range near edges between inequivalent facets. The surface ionic relaxation at facet edges is shown to influence appreciably the local electrostatic potential in the vacuum. Various edges between Al(100) and Al(111) facets are studied, as well as between Na(110) facets. We also develop a model of electronic surface dipoles, which accounts for the surface charge transfer between inequivalent facets, and which allows us to predict the influence of the shape and size of a macroscopic crystal on its work functions. (author)

Effect of surface charge on the cellular uptake of fluorescent magnetic nanoparticles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kralj, Slavko, E-mail: slavko.kralj@ijs.si [Jozef Stefan Institute, Department for Materials Synthesis (Slovenia); Rojnik, Matija [University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Pharmacy (Slovenia); Romih, Rok [University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Cell Biology (Slovenia); Jagodic, Marko [Institute of Mathematics, Physics and Mechanics (Slovenia); Kos, Janko [University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Pharmacy (Slovenia); Makovec, Darko [Jozef Stefan Institute, Department for Materials Synthesis (Slovenia)

2012-10-15

We report on the nanoparticle uptake into MCF10A neoT and PC-3 cells using flow cytometry, confocal microscopy, SQUID magnetometry, and transmission electron microscopy. The aim was to evaluate the influence of the nanoparticles' surface charge on the uptake efficiency. The surface of the superparamagnetic, silica-coated, maghemite nanoparticles was modified using amino functionalization for the positive surface charge (CNPs), and carboxyl functionalization for the negative surface charge (ANPs). The CNPs and ANPs exhibited no significant cytotoxicity in concentrations up to 500 {mu}g/cm{sup 3} in 24 h. The CNPs, bound to a plasma membrane, were intensely phagocytosed, while the ANPs entered cells through fluid-phase endocytosis in a lower internalization degree. The ANPs and CNPs were shown to be co-localized with a specific lysosomal marker, thus confirming their presence in lysosomes. We showed that tailoring the surface charge of the nanoparticles has a great impact on their internalization.

Full charge-density calculation of the surface energy of metals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vitos, Levente; Kollár, J..; Skriver, Hans Lomholt

1994-01-01

of a spherically symmetrized charge density, while the Coulomb and exchange-correlation contributions are calculated by means of the complete, nonspherically symmetric charge density within nonoverlapping, space-filling Wigner-Seitz cells. The functional is used to assess the convergence and the accuracy......We have calculated the surface energy and the work function of the 4d metals by means of an energy functional based on a self-consistent, spherically symmetric atomic-sphere potential. In this approach the kinetic energy is calculated completely within the atomic-sphere approximation (ASA) by means...... of the linear-muffin-tin-orbitals (LMTO) method and the ASA in surface calculations. We find that the full charge-density functional improves the agreement with recent full-potential LMTO calculations to a level where the average deviation in surface energy over the 4d series is down to 10%....

Counterion release from a discretely charged surface in an electrolyte: Monte Carlo simulation study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hernández-Contreras, M

2015-01-01

Monte Carlo simulations allowed us to determine the amount of released electric charges from a discretely charged surface in 1:1 aqueous electrolyte solution as a function of surface charge density. Within the restricted primitive model and for a fixed concentration of 0.1 M bulk electrolyte in solution, there is an increase in the number of released counterions per unit surface area as the strength of the surface charge is enhanced. A similar behaviour of the number of released counterions was also found through the use of mean field and liquid theory methods

Interaction of flexible surface hairs with near-wall turbulence.

Science.gov (United States)

Brücker, Ch

2011-05-11

The interaction of near-wall turbulence with hairy surfaces is investigated in a turbulent boundary layer flow along a flat plate in an oil channel at Re = 1.2 × 10⁶. The plate is covered locally with a dense carpet of elastomeric micro-hairs (length L = 1 mm, length in viscous units L( + ) = 30) which are arranged in a regular grid (60 × 30 hairs with a streamwise spacing Δx( + )≈15 and a spanwise spacing Δy( + )≈30). Instead of the micro-structures used in previous studies for sensory applications, the surface hairs are considerably larger and much more densely distributed with a spacing of S/D wall-normal directions. Near-wall high-frequency disturbances excited by the passage of turbulent sweeps are dampened over their course along the carpet. The cooperative action of the hairs leads to an energy transfer from small-scale motion to larger scales, thus increasing the coherence of the motion pattern in streamwise and spanwise directions. As a consequence of the specific arrangement of the micro-hairs in streamwise columns a reduced spanwise meandering and stabilization of the streamwise velocity streaks is achieved by promoting varicose waves and inhibiting sinusoidal waves. Streak stabilization is known to be a major contributor to turbulent drag reduction. Thus it is concluded that hairy surfaces may be of benefit for turbulent drag reduction as hypothesized by Bartenwerfer and Bechert (1991 Z. Flugwiss. Weltraumforsch. 15 19-26).

Experimental Investigation of Compliant Wall Surface Deformation in Turbulent Boundary Layer

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jin; Agarwal, Karuna; Katz, Joseph

2017-11-01

On-going research integrates Tomographic PIV (TPIV) with Mach-Zehnder Interferometry (MZI) to measure the correlations between deformation of a compliant wall and a turbulent channel flow or a boundary layer. Aiming to extend the scope to two-way coupling, in the present experiment the wall properties have been designed, based on a theoretical analysis, to increase the amplitude of deformation to several μm, achieving the same order of magnitude as the boundary layer wall unit (5-10 μm). It requires higher speeds and a softer surface that has a Young's modulus of 0.1MPa (vs. 1Mpa before), as well as proper thickness (5 mm) that maximize the wall response to excitation at scales that fall within the temporal and spatial resolution of the instruments. The experiments are performed in a water tunnel extension to the JHU refractive index matched facility. The transparent compliant surface is made of PDMS molded on the tunnel window, and measurements are performed at friction velocity Reynolds numbers in the 1000-7000 range. MZI measures the 2D surface deformation as several magnifications. The time-resolved 3D pressure distribution is determined by calculating to spatial distribution of material acceleration from the TPIV data and integrating it using a GPU-based, parallel-line, omni-directional integration method. ONR.

Surface Layer Fluorination-Modulated Space Charge Behaviors in HVDC Cable Accessory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jin Li

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Space charges tend to accumulate on the surface and at the interface of ethylene–propylene–diene terpolymer (EPDM, serving as high voltage direct current (HVDC cable accessory insulation, which likely induces electrical field distortion and dielectric breakdown. Direct fluorination is an effective method to modify the surface characteristics of the EPDM without altering the bulk properties too much. In this paper, the surface morphology, hydrophobic properties, relative permittivity, and DC conductivity of the EPDM before and after fluorination treatment were tested. Furthermore, the surface and interface charge behaviors in the HVDC cable accessory were investigated by the pulsed electroacoustic (PEA method, and explained from the point of view of trap distribution. The results show that fluorination helps the EPDM polymer obtain lower surface energy and relative permittivity, which is beneficial to the interface match in composite insulation systems. The lowest degree of space charge accumulation occurs in EPDM with 30 min of fluorination. After analyzing the results of the 3D potentials and the density of states (DOS behaviors in EPDM before and after fluorination, it can be found that fluorination treatment introduces shallower electron traps, and the special electrostatic potential after fluorination can significantly suppress the space charge accumulation at the interface in the HVDC cable accessory.

Hydration of excess electrons trapped in charge pockets on molecular surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Jalbout, Abraham F.; Del Castillo, R.; Adamowicz, Ludwik

2007-01-01

In this work we strive to design a novel electron trap located on a molecular surface. The process of electron trapping involves hydration of the trapped electron. Previous calculations on surface electron trapping revealed that clusters of OH groups can form stable hydrogen-bonded networks on one side of a hydrocarbon surface (i.e. cyclohexane sheets), while the hydrogen atoms on the opposite side of the surface form pockets of positive charge that can attract extra negative charge. The excess electron density on such surfaces can be further stabilized by interactions with water molecules. Our calculations show that these anionic systems are stable with respect to vertical electron detachment (VDE).

Trajectory effects in multiply charged ion-surface interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lebius, H.; Huang, W.; Schuch, R.

1999-01-01

Ar ions of 4.3 keV q in were scattered at large angles (θ=75 degree sign ) from a clean oriented surface. By selecting Ar projectiles having a large ionization potential and by using a large scattering angle only ions scattered at the first atomic layer of the surface were detected. Scattered ion energy spectra show peaks of single scattering and double scattering of the Ar projectile ions from one or two surface Au atoms, and the distribution attributed to double collisions splits into two peaks when the scattering plane coincides with a crystallographic plane. Simulations with a MARLOWE code allowed for interpretation of the structure in the double collision peak by in-plane and zig-zag double collisions. Differences in the relative peak heights between the experiment and a MARLOWE simulation were partly explained by different neutralization probabilities with varying trajectories. Yield changes with increasing charge states show interesting possibilities for future experiments with highly charged ions

The surface modifications of multi-walled carbon nanotubes for multi-walled carbon nanotube/poly(ether ether ketone) composites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao, Zongshuang; Qiu, Li; Yang, Yongzhen; Chen, Yongkang; Liu, Xuguang

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: Multi-walled carbon nanotube/poly(ether ether ketone) (MWCNT/PEEK) composites incorporating surface modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) as fillers were fabricated in a solution blending method in order to explore the dynamic mechanical and tribological properties of MWCNT/PEEK composites systematically. It is evident that surface modifications of MWCNTs have a significant impact on dispersibility of MWCNTs in PEEK, dynamic mechanical and tribological properties of MWCNT/PEEK composites. Typically, a clear effect of surface modifications of MWCNTs on tribological properties of MWCNT/PEEK composites was observed. A significant reduction in frictional coefficient of MWCNT/PEEK composites with the MWCNTs modified with ethanolamine has been achieved and the self-lubricating film on their worn surfaces was also observed. - Highlights: • The dispersibility of surface modified MWCNTs in PEEK has been studied. • MWCNTs modified with ethanolamine have showed a good dispersion in PEEK. • Surface modifications of MWCNTs have a significant impact on both dynamic mechanical and tribological properties of MWCNT/PEEK composites. - Abstract: The effects of surface modifications of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) on the morphology, dynamic mechanical and tribological properties of multi-walled carbon nanotube/poly(ether ether ketone) (MWCNT/PEEK) composites have been investigated. MWCNTs were treated with mixed acids to obtain acid-functionalized MWCNTs. Then the acid-functionalized MWCNTs were modified with ethanolamine (named e-MWCNTs). The MWCNT/PEEK composites were prepared by a solution-blending method. A more homogeneous distribution of e-MWCNTs within the composites was found with scanning electron microscopy. Dynamic mechanical analysis demonstrated a clear increase in the storage modulus of e-MWCNT/PEEK composites because of the improved interfacial adhesion strength between e-MWCNTs and PEEK. Furthermore, the presence of e

The surface modifications of multi-walled carbon nanotubes for multi-walled carbon nanotube/poly(ether ether ketone) composites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cao, Zongshuang [Key Laboratory of Interface Science and Engineering in Advanced Materials, Ministry of Education, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Research Center of Advanced Material Science and Technology, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Qiu, Li [Key Laboratory of Interface Science and Engineering in Advanced Materials, Ministry of Education, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Yang, Yongzhen, E-mail: yyztyut@126.com [Key Laboratory of Interface Science and Engineering in Advanced Materials, Ministry of Education, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Research Center of Advanced Material Science and Technology, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Chen, Yongkang, E-mail: y.k.chen@herts.ac.uk [Key Laboratory of Interface Science and Engineering in Advanced Materials, Ministry of Education, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); University of Hertfordshire, School of Engineering and Technology, Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL10 9AB (United Kingdom); Liu, Xuguang [Key Laboratory of Interface Science and Engineering in Advanced Materials, Ministry of Education, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China)

2015-10-30

Graphical abstract: Multi-walled carbon nanotube/poly(ether ether ketone) (MWCNT/PEEK) composites incorporating surface modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) as fillers were fabricated in a solution blending method in order to explore the dynamic mechanical and tribological properties of MWCNT/PEEK composites systematically. It is evident that surface modifications of MWCNTs have a significant impact on dispersibility of MWCNTs in PEEK, dynamic mechanical and tribological properties of MWCNT/PEEK composites. Typically, a clear effect of surface modifications of MWCNTs on tribological properties of MWCNT/PEEK composites was observed. A significant reduction in frictional coefficient of MWCNT/PEEK composites with the MWCNTs modified with ethanolamine has been achieved and the self-lubricating film on their worn surfaces was also observed. - Highlights: • The dispersibility of surface modified MWCNTs in PEEK has been studied. • MWCNTs modified with ethanolamine have showed a good dispersion in PEEK. • Surface modifications of MWCNTs have a significant impact on both dynamic mechanical and tribological properties of MWCNT/PEEK composites. - Abstract: The effects of surface modifications of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) on the morphology, dynamic mechanical and tribological properties of multi-walled carbon nanotube/poly(ether ether ketone) (MWCNT/PEEK) composites have been investigated. MWCNTs were treated with mixed acids to obtain acid-functionalized MWCNTs. Then the acid-functionalized MWCNTs were modified with ethanolamine (named e-MWCNTs). The MWCNT/PEEK composites were prepared by a solution-blending method. A more homogeneous distribution of e-MWCNTs within the composites was found with scanning electron microscopy. Dynamic mechanical analysis demonstrated a clear increase in the storage modulus of e-MWCNT/PEEK composites because of the improved interfacial adhesion strength between e-MWCNTs and PEEK. Furthermore, the presence of e

Effect of the surface charge discretization on electric double layers: a Monte Carlo simulation study.

Science.gov (United States)

Madurga, Sergio; Martín-Molina, Alberto; Vilaseca, Eudald; Mas, Francesc; Quesada-Pérez, Manuel

2007-06-21

The structure of the electric double layer in contact with discrete and continuously charged planar surfaces is studied within the framework of the primitive model through Monte Carlo simulations. Three different discretization models are considered together with the case of uniform distribution. The effect of discreteness is analyzed in terms of charge density profiles. For point surface groups, a complete equivalence with the situation of uniformly distributed charge is found if profiles are exclusively analyzed as a function of the distance to the charged surface. However, some differences are observed moving parallel to the surface. Significant discrepancies with approaches that do not account for discreteness are reported if charge sites of finite size placed on the surface are considered.

A theoretical study on the effect of piezoelectric charges on the surface potential and surface depletion region of ZnO nanowires

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Purahmad, Mohsen; Stroscio, Michael A; Dutta, Mitra

2013-01-01

The electrostatic potential and depletion width in piezoelectric semiconductor nanowires are derived by considering a non-depleted region and a surface depleted region and solving the Poisson equation. By determining the piezoelectric-induced charge density, in terms of equivalent density of charges, the effect of piezoelectric charges on the surface depletion region and the distributed electric potential in nanowire have been investigated. The numerical results demonstrate that the ZnO NWs with a smaller radius have a larger surface depletion region which results in a stronger surface potential and depletion region perturbation by induced piezoelectric charges. (paper)

Experimental surface charge density of the Si (100)-2x1H surface

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ciston, J.; Marks, L.D.; Feidenhans'l, R.

2006-01-01

We report a three-dimensional charge density refinement from x-ray diffraction intensities of the Si (100) 2x1H surface. By paying careful attention to parameterizing the bulk Si bonding, we are able to locate the hydrogen atoms at the surface, which could not be done previously. In addition, we...

Induced superhydrophobic and antimicrobial character of zinc metal modified ceramic wall tile surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Özcan, Selçuk; Açıkbaş, Gökhan; Çalış Açıkbaş, Nurcan

2018-04-01

Hydrophobic surfaces are also known to have antimicrobial effect by restricting the adherence of microorganisms. However, ceramic products are produced by high temperature processes resulting in a hydrophilic surface. In this study, an industrial ceramic wall tile glaze composition was modified by the inclusion of metallic zinc powder in the glaze suspension applied on the pre-sintered wall tile bodies by spraying. The glazed tiles were gloss fired at industrially applicable peak temperatures ranging from 980 °C to 1100 °C. The fired tile surfaces were coated with a commercial fluoropolymer avoiding water absorption. The surfaces were characterized with SEM, EDS, XRD techniques, roughness, sessile water drop contact angle, surface energy measurements, and standard antimicrobial tests. The surface hydrophobicity and the antimicrobial activity results were compared with that of unmodified, uncoated gloss fired wall tiles. A superhydrophobic contact angle of 150° was achieved at 1000 °C peak temperature due to the formation of micro-structured nanocrystalline zinc oxide granules providing a specific surface topography. At higher peak temperatures the hydrophobicity was lost as the specific granular surface topography deteriorated with the conversion of zinc oxide granules to the ubiquitous willemite crystals embedded in the glassy matrix. The antimicrobial efficacy also correlated with the hydrophobic character.

Effective Electrostatic Interactions Between Two Overall Neutral Surfaces with Quenched Charge Heterogeneity Over Atomic Length Scale

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, S.

2017-12-01

Using Monte Carlo results as a reference, a classical density functional theory ( CDFT) is shown to reliably predict the forces between two heterogeneously charged surfaces immersed in an electrolyte solution, whereas the Poisson-Boltzmann ( PB) theory is demonstrated to deteriorate obviously for the same system even if the system parameters considered fall within the validity range of the PB theory in the homogeneously charged surfaces. By applying the tested CDFT, we study the effective electrostatic potential of mean force ( EPMF) between two face-face planar and hard surfaces of zero net charge on which positive and negative charges are separated and considered to present as discontinuous spots on the inside edges of the two surfaces. Main conclusions are summarized as follows: (i) strength of the EPMF in the surface charge separation case is very sensitively and positively correlated with the surface charge separation level and valency of the salt ion. Particularly, the charge separation level and the salt ion valency have a synergistic effect, which makes high limit of the EPMF strength in the surface charge separation case significantly go beyond that of the ideal homogeneously charged surface counterpart at average surface charge density similar to the average surface positive or negative charge density in the charge separation case. (ii) The surface charge distribution patterns mainly influence sign of the EPMF: symmetrical and asymmetrical patterns induce repulsive and attractive (at small distances) EPMF, respectively; but with low valency salt ions and low charge separation level the opposite may be the case. With simultaneous presence of both higher valency cation and anion, the EPMF can be repulsive at intermediate distances for asymmetrical patterns. (iii) Salt ion size has a significant impact, which makes the EPMF tend to become more and more repulsive with the ion diameter regardless of the surface charge distribution patterns and the valency of

Plasmonic detection and visualization of directed adsorption of charged single nanoparticles to patterned surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scherbahn, Vitali; Nizamov, Shavkat; Mirsky, Vladimir M.

2016-01-01

It has recently been shown that surface plasmon microscopy (SPM) allows single nanoparticles (NPs) on sensor surfaces to be detected and analyzed. The authors have applied this technique to study the adsorption of single metallic and plastic NPs. Binding of gold NPs (40, 60 and 100 nm in size) and of 100 nm polystyrene NPs to gold surfaces modified by differently ω-functionalized alkyl thiols was studied first. Self-assembled monolayers (SAM) with varying terminal functions including amino, carboxy, oligo(ethylene glycol), methyl, or trimethylammonium groups were deposited on gold films to form surfaces possessing different charge and hydrophobicity. The affinity of NPs to these surfaces depends strongly on the type of coating. SAMs terminated with trimethylammonium groups and carboxy group display highly different affinity and therefore were preferred when creating patterned charged surfaces. Citrate-stabilized gold NPs and sulfate-terminated polystyrene NPs were used as negatively charged NPs, while branched polyethylenimine-coated silver NPs were used as positively charged NPs. It is shown that the charged patterned areas on the gold films are capable of selectively adsorbing oppositely charged NPs that can be detected and analyzed with an ∼1 ng⋅mL −1 detection limit. (author)

Control of single-electron charging of metallic nanoparticles onto amorphous silicon surface.

Science.gov (United States)

Weis, Martin; Gmucová, Katarína; Nádazdy, Vojtech; Capek, Ignác; Satka, Alexander; Kopáni, Martin; Cirák, Július; Majková, Eva

2008-11-01

Sequential single-electron charging of iron oxide nanoparticles encapsulated in oleic acid/oleyl amine envelope and deposited by the Langmuir-Blodgett technique onto Pt electrode covered with undoped hydrogenated amorphous silicon film is reported. Single-electron charging (so-called quantized double-layer charging) of nanoparticles is detected by cyclic voltammetry as current peaks and the charging effect can be switched on/off by the electric field in the surface region induced by the excess of negative/positive charged defect states in the amorphous silicon layer. The particular charge states in amorphous silicon are created by the simultaneous application of a suitable bias voltage and illumination before the measurement. The influence of charged states on the electric field in the surface region is evaluated by the finite element method. The single-electron charging is analyzed by the standard quantized double layer model as well as two weak-link junctions model. Both approaches are in accordance with experiment and confirm single-electron charging by tunnelling process at room temperature. This experiment illustrates the possibility of the creation of a voltage-controlled capacitor for nanotechnology.

Charged plate in asymmetric electrolytes: One-loop renormalization of surface charge density and Debye length due to ionic correlations.

Science.gov (United States)

Ding, Mingnan; Lu, Bing-Sui; Xing, Xiangjun

2016-10-01

Self-consistent field theory (SCFT) is used to study the mean potential near a charged plate inside a m:-n electrolyte. A perturbation series is developed in terms of g=4πκb, where band1/κ are Bjerrum length and bare Debye length, respectively. To the zeroth order, we obtain the nonlinear Poisson-Boltzmann theory. For asymmetric electrolytes (m≠n), the first order (one-loop) correction to mean potential contains a secular term, which indicates the breakdown of the regular perturbation method. Using a renormalizaton group transformation, we remove the secular term and obtain a globally well-behaved one-loop approximation with a renormalized Debye length and a renormalized surface charge density. Furthermore, we find that if the counterions are multivalent, the surface charge density is renormalized substantially downwards and may undergo a change of sign, if the bare surface charge density is sufficiently large. Our results agrees with large MC simulation even when the density of electrolytes is relatively high.

Surface charge measurement using an electrostatic probe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Crichton, George C; McAllister, Iain Wilson

1998-01-01

During the 1960s, the first measurements of charge on dielectric surfaces using simple electrostatic probes were reported. However it is only within the last 10 years that a proper understanding of the probe response has been developed. This situation arose as a consequence of the earlier studies...

Plasma surface treatment to improve surface charge accumulation and dissipation of epoxy resin exposed to DC and nanosecond-pulse voltages

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Cheng; Lin, Haofan; Zhang, Shuai; Xie, Qin; Ren, Chengyan; Shao, Tao

2017-10-01

In this paper, deposition by non-thermal plasma is used as a surface modification technique to change the surface characteristics of epoxy resin exposed to DC and nanosecond-pulse voltages. The corresponding surface characteristics in both cases of DC and nanosecond-pulse voltages before and after the modification are compared and investigated. The measurement of the surface potential provides the surface charge distribution, which is used to show the accumulation and dissipation process of the surface charges. Morphology observations, chemical composition and electrical parameters measurements are used to evaluate the treatment effects. The experimental results show that, before the plasma treatment, the accumulated surface charges in the case of the DC voltage are more than that in the case of the nanosecond-pulse voltage. Moreover, the decay rate of the surface charges for the DC voltage is higher than that for the nanosecond-pulse voltage. However, the decay rate is no more than 41% after 1800 s for both types of voltages. After the plasma treatment, the maximum surface potentials decrease to 57.33% and 32.57% of their values before treatment for the DC and nanosecond-pulse voltages, respectively, indicating a decrease in the accumulated surface charges. The decay rate exceeds 90% for both types of voltages. These changes are mainly attributed to a change in the surface nanostructure, an increase in conductivity, and a decrease in the depth of energy level.

Plasma surface treatment to improve surface charge accumulation and dissipation of epoxy resin exposed to DC and nanosecond-pulse voltages

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Cheng; Lin, Haofan; Zhang, Shuai; Ren, Chengyan; Shao, Tao; Xie, Qin

2017-01-01

In this paper, deposition by non-thermal plasma is used as a surface modification technique to change the surface characteristics of epoxy resin exposed to DC and nanosecond-pulse voltages. The corresponding surface characteristics in both cases of DC and nanosecond-pulse voltages before and after the modification are compared and investigated. The measurement of the surface potential provides the surface charge distribution, which is used to show the accumulation and dissipation process of the surface charges. Morphology observations, chemical composition and electrical parameters measurements are used to evaluate the treatment effects. The experimental results show that, before the plasma treatment, the accumulated surface charges in the case of the DC voltage are more than that in the case of the nanosecond-pulse voltage. Moreover, the decay rate of the surface charges for the DC voltage is higher than that for the nanosecond-pulse voltage. However, the decay rate is no more than 41% after 1800 s for both types of voltages. After the plasma treatment, the maximum surface potentials decrease to 57.33% and 32.57% of their values before treatment for the DC and nanosecond-pulse voltages, respectively, indicating a decrease in the accumulated surface charges. The decay rate exceeds 90% for both types of voltages. These changes are mainly attributed to a change in the surface nanostructure, an increase in conductivity, and a decrease in the depth of energy level. (paper)

The protective nature of passivation films on zinc: surface charge

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muster, Tim H.; Cole, Ivan S.

2004-01-01

The influence of oxide surface charge on the corrosion performance of zinc metals was investigated. Oxidised zinc species (zinc oxide, zinc hydroxychloride, zinc hydroxysulfate and zinc hydroxycarbonate) with chemical compositions similar to those produced on zinc during atmospheric corrosion were formed as particles from aqueous solution, and as passive films deposited onto zinc powder, and rolled zinc, surfaces. Synthesized oxides were characterised by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and electron probe X-ray microanalysis. The zeta potentials of various oxide particles, as determined by microelectrophoresis, are reported as a function of pH. Particulates containing a majority of zinc hydroxycarbonate and zinc hydroxysulfate crystallites were found to possess a negative surface charge below pH 6, whilst zinc oxide-hydroxide and zinc hydroxychloride crystallites possessed isoelectric points (IEP's) higher than pH 8. The ability of chloride species to pass through a bed of 3 μm diameter zinc powder was found to increase for surfaces possessing carboxy and sulfate surface species, suggesting that negatively charged surfaces can aid in the repulsion of chloride ions. Electrochemical analysis of the open-circuit potential as a function of time at a fixed pH of 6.5 showed that the chemical composition of passive films on zinc plates influenced the ability of chloride ions to access anodic sites for periods of approximately 1 h

3D electric field calculation with surface charge method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamada, S.

1992-01-01

This paper describes an outline and some examples of three dimensional electric field calculations with a computer code developed at NIRS. In the code, a surface charge method is adopted because of it's simplicity in the mesh establishing procedure. The charge density in a triangular mesh is assumed to distribute with a linear function of the position. The electric field distribution is calculated for a pair of drift tubes with the focusing fingers on the opposing surfaces. The field distribution in an acceleration gap is analyzed with a Fourier-Bessel series expansion method. The calculated results excellently reproduces the measured data with a magnetic model. (author)

The quantic distribution of mobile carriers in a surface charge coupled device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ionescu, M.

1977-01-01

The quantic distribution of the electrons in a surface charge coupled device (CCD), for a MIS structure with a real insulator (finite difference energy between the conduction bands of the insulator and of the semiconductor) is presented. A fundamental limitation of the charge transfer in a surface CCD is obtained. (author)

Heat transfer enhancement of free surface MHD-flow by a protrusion wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hulin Huang; Bo Li

2010-01-01

Due to the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) effect on the flow, which degrades heat transfer coefficients by pulsation suppression of external magnetic field on the flow, a hemispherical protrusion wall is applied to free surface MHD-flow system as a heat transfer enhancement, because the hemispherical protrusion wall has some excellent characteristics including high heat transfer coefficients, low friction factors and high overall thermal performances. So, the characteristics of the fluid flow and heat transfer of the free surface MHD-flow with hemispherical protrusion wall are simulated numerically and the influence of some parameters, such as protrusion height δ/D, and Hartmann number, are also discussed in this paper. It is found that, in the range of Hartmann number 30 ≤ Ha ≤ 70, the protrusion wall assemblies can achieve heat transfer enhancements (Nu/Nu 0 ) of about 1.3-2.3 relative to the smooth channel, while the friction loss (f/f 0 ) increases by about 1.34-1.45. Thus, the high Nusselt number can be obtained when the protrusion wall with a radically lower friction loss increase, which may help get much higher overall thermal performances.

Understanding colloidal charge renormilization from surface chemistry : experiment and theory

OpenAIRE

Gisler, Thomas; Schulz, S. F.; Borkovec, Michal; Sticher, Hans; Schurtenberger, Peter; D'Aguanno, Bruno; Klein, Rudolf

1994-01-01

In this paper we report on the charging behavior of latex particles in aqueous suspensions. We use static light scattering and acid-base titrations as complementary techniques to observe both effective and bare particle charges. Acid-base titrations at various ionic strengths provide the pH dependent charging curves. The surface chemical parameters (dissociation constant of the acidic carboxylic groups, total density of ionizable sites and Stem capacitance) are determined from tits of a Stem ...

Charge state analysis of heavy ions after penetration of uncleaned and sputter cleaned conducting surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, M.; Schosnig, M.; Kroneberger, K.; Tobisch, M.; Maier, R.; Kuzel, M.; Fiedler, C.; Hofmann, D.; Groeneveld, K.O.

1994-01-01

The evolution of the charge state distribution of fast ions inside a solid is of basic interest in various research fields as stopping power measurements etc. The existing models for the charge state evolution differ in the treatment of the projectile-exit-surface interaction, which has a strong influence on the final charge state distributions. We measured the charge state distributions for C + , N + , and O + (30≤E/M≤130 keV/u) impact on thin C, Cu, and Au foils, where the surface properties were modified by sputter cleaning. The mesurements show a pronounced change of the mean projectile charge state to lower values in the case of sputter cleaned surfaces. This result underlines the importance of the projectile-surface interaction for the generation of the outcoming charge state distribution. (orig.)

The pH dependent surface charging and points of zero charge. VII. Update.

Science.gov (United States)

Kosmulski, Marek

2018-01-01

The pristine points of zero charge (PZC) and isoelectric points (IEP) of metal oxides and IEP of other materials from the recent literature, and a few older results (overlooked in previous searches) are summarized. This study is an update of the previous compilations by the same author [Surface Charging and Points of Zero Charge, CRC, Boca Raton, 2009; J. Colloid Interface Sci. 337 (2009) 439; 353 (2011) 1; 426 (2014) 209]. The field has been very active, but most PZC and IEP are reported for materials, which are very well-documented already (silica, alumina, titania, iron oxides). IEP of (nominally) Gd 2 O 3 , NaTaO 3 , and SrTiO 3 have been reported in the recent literature. Their IEP were not reported in older studies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Interaction of slow highly-charged ions with metals and insulators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamazaki, Y.

2007-01-01

Interaction of slow highly charged ions with insulator as well as metallic surfaces is discussed. In addition to the usual flat surface targets, studies with thin foils having a multitude of straight holes of ∼100 nm in diameter (micro-capillary foil) are introduced, which provide various unique information on the above surface interaction. In the case of an insulator micro-capillary foil, a so-called guiding effect was observed, where slow highly charged ions can transmit through the capillary tunnel keeping their initial charge state even when the capillary axis is tilted against the incident beam. A similar guiding effect has recently been found for slow highly-charged ions transmitted through a single tapered glass capillary. In both cases, the guiding effects are expected to be governed by a self-organized charging and discharging of the inner-wall of the insulator capillary. One of the prominent features of this guiding effect with the tapered capillary is the formation of a nano-size beam, which can be applied in various fields of science including surface nano-modification/analysis, nano-surgery of living cells, etc

Highly charged ions impinging on a stepped metal surface under grazing incidence

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Robin, A; Niemann, D; Stolterfoht, N; Heiland, W

We report on energy loss measurements and charge state distributions for 60 keV N6+ and 75 keV N5+ ions scattered off a Pt(110)(1x2) single crystal surface. In particular, the influence of surface steps on the energy loss and the outgoing charge states is discussed. The scattering angle and the

Mapping surface charge density of lipid bilayers by quantitative surface conductivity microscopy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Klausen, Lasse Hyldgaard; Fuhs, Thomas; Dong, Mingdong

2016-01-01

Local surface charge density of lipid membranes influences membrane-protein interactions leading to distinct functions in all living cells, and it is a vital parameter in understanding membrane-binding mechanisms, liposome design and drug delivery. Despite the significance, no method has so far...

Effect of net surface charge on particle sizing and material recognition by using phase Doppler anemometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou Jun; Xie Li

2011-01-01

By taking net surface charge into consideration, the scattering field of particles illuminated by dual laser beams of phase Doppler anemometry (PDA) is computed based on Mie's theory, and the effect of net surface charge on the phase-diameter relationship and the phase ratio is studied. It is found that the phase-diameter relationship and the relationship between the phase ratio and the refractive index of charged particles could be significantly different from those of uncharged particles, which would lead to errors in particle sizing and the measurement of refractive indices. A method of recognizing charged particles and determining the value of their surface conductivity, which is related to net surface charge, is proposed by utilizing the effect of net surface charge on the measurement of refractive indices using PDA.

Effect of net surface charge on particle sizing and material recognition by using phase Doppler anemometry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou Jun; Xie Li

2011-01-20

By taking net surface charge into consideration, the scattering field of particles illuminated by dual laser beams of phase Doppler anemometry (PDA) is computed based on Mie's theory, and the effect of net surface charge on the phase-diameter relationship and the phase ratio is studied. It is found that the phase-diameter relationship and the relationship between the phase ratio and the refractive index of charged particles could be significantly different from those of uncharged particles, which would lead to errors in particle sizing and the measurement of refractive indices. A method of recognizing charged particles and determining the value of their surface conductivity, which is related to net surface charge, is proposed by utilizing the effect of net surface charge on the measurement of refractive indices using PDA.

Explanation of the surface peak in charge integrated LEIS spectra

CERN Document Server

Draxler, M; Taglauer, E; Schmid, K; Gruber, R; Ermolov, S N; Bauer, P

2003-01-01

Low energy ion scattering is very surface sensitive if scattered ions are analyzed. By time-of-flight (TOF) techniques, also neutral and charge integrated spectra (ions plus neutrals) can be obtained, which yield information about deeper layers. In the literature, the observation of a more or less pronounced surface peak was reported for charge integrated spectra, the intensity of the surface peak being higher at low energies and for heavy projectiles. Aiming at a more profound physical understanding of this surface peak, we performed TOF-experiments and computer simulations for He projectiles and a copper target. Experiments were done in the range 1-9 keV for a scattering angle of 129 deg. . The simulation was performed using the MARLOWE code for the given experimental parameters and a polycrystalline target. At low energies, a pronounced surface peak was observed, which fades away at higher energies. This peak is quantitatively reproduced by the simulation, and corresponds to scattering from approx 2 atomic...

Magnetic charge distribution and stray field landscape of asymmetric néel walls in a magnetically patterned exchange bias layer system

Science.gov (United States)

Zingsem, Norbert; Ahrend, Florian; Vock, Silvia; Gottlob, Daniel; Krug, Ingo; Doganay, Hatice; Holzinger, Dennis; Neu, Volker; Ehresmann, Arno

2017-12-01

The 3D stray field landscape above an exchange bias layer system with engineered domain walls has been fully characterized by quantitative magnetic force microscopy (qMFM) measurements. This method is based on a complete quantification of the MFM tip’s imaging properties and the subtraction of its contribution from the measured MFM data by deconvolution in Fourier space. The magnetically patterned Ir17Mn83/Co70Fe30-exchange-bias-multilayers have been designed to contain asymmetric head-to-head (hh)/tail-to-tail (tt) Néel walls between domains of different magnetic anisotropies for potential use in guided particle transport. In the current application, qMFM reveals the effective magnetic charge profile on the surface of the sample—with high spatial resolution and in an absolute quantitative manner. These data enable to calculate the magnetostatic potential and the full stray field landscape above the sample surface. It has been successfully tested against: (i) micromagnetic simulations of the magnetization structure of a comparable exchange-bias layer system, (ii) measurements of the magnetization profile across the domain boundary with x-ray photoemission electron microscopy, and (iii) direct stray field measurements obtained by scanning Hall probe microscopy at elevated scan heights. This approach results in a quantitative determination of the stray field landscape at close distances to the sample surface, which will be of importance for remote magnetic particle transport applications in lab-on-a-chip devices. Furthermore, the highly resolving and quantitative MFM approach reveals details of the domain transition across the artificially structured phase boundary, which have to be attributed to a continuous change in the materials parameters across this boundary, rather than an abrupt one.

Charge-state distribution of MeV He ions scattered from the surface atoms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimura, Kenji; Ohtsuka, Hisashi; Mannami, Michihiko

1993-01-01

The charge-state distribution of 500-keV He ions scattered from a SnTe (001) surface has been investigated using a new technique of high-resolution high-energy ion scattering spectroscopy. The observed charge-state distribution of ions scattered from the topmost atomic layer coincides with that of ions scattered from the subsurface region and does not depend on the incident charge state but depends on the exit angle. The observed exit-angle dependence is explained by a model which includes the charge-exchange process with the valence electrons in the tail of the electron distribution at the surface. (author)

Effect of plasma-induced surface charging on catalytic processes: application to CO2 activation

Science.gov (United States)

Bal, Kristof M.; Huygh, Stijn; Bogaerts, Annemie; Neyts, Erik C.

2018-02-01

Understanding the nature and effect of the multitude of plasma-surface interactions in plasma catalysis is a crucial requirement for further process development and improvement. A particularly intriguing and rather unique property of a plasma-catalytic setup is the ability of the plasma to modify the electronic structure, and hence chemical properties, of the catalyst through charging, i.e. the absorption of excess electrons. In this work, we develop a quantum chemical model based on density functional theory to study excess negative surface charges in a heterogeneous catalyst exposed to a plasma. This method is specifically applied to investigate plasma-catalytic CO2 activation on supported M/Al2O3 (M = Ti, Ni, Cu) single atom catalysts. We find that (1) the presence of a negative surface charge dramatically improves the reductive power of the catalyst, strongly promoting the splitting of CO2 to CO and oxygen, and (2) the relative activity of the investigated transition metals is also changed upon charging, suggesting that controlled surface charging is a powerful additional parameter to tune catalyst activity and selectivity. These results strongly point to plasma-induced surface charging of the catalyst as an important factor contributing to the plasma-catalyst synergistic effects frequently reported for plasma catalysis.

Effect of surface charge of immortalized mouse cerebral endothelial cell monolayer on transport of charged solutes.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Wei; Li, Guanglei; Gil, Eun Seok; Lowe, Tao Lu; Fu, Bingmei M

2010-04-01

Charge carried by the surface glycocalyx layer (SGL) of the cerebral endothelium has been shown to significantly modulate the permeability of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) to charged solutes in vivo. The cultured monolayer of bEnd3, an immortalized mouse cerebral endothelial cell line, is becoming a popular in vitro BBB model due to its easy growth and maintenance of many BBB characteristics over repeated passages. To test whether the SGL of bEnd3 monolayer carries similar charge as that in the intact BBB and quantify this charge, which can be characterized by the SGL thickness (L(f)) and charge density (C(mf)), we measured the solute permeability of bEnd3 monolayer to neutral solutes and to solutes with similar size but opposite charges: negatively charged alpha-lactalbumin (-11) and positively charged ribonuclease (+3). Combining the measured permeability data with a transport model across the cell monolayer, we predicted the L(f) and the C(mf) of bEnd3 monolayer, which is approximately 160 nm and approximately 25 mEq/L, respectively. We also investigated whether orosomucoid, a plasma glycoprotein modulating the charge of the intact BBB, alters the charge of bEnd3 monolayer. We found that 1 mg/mL orosomucoid would increase SGL charge density of bEnd3 monolayer to approximately 2-fold of its control value.

Nanometer-size surface modification produced by single, low energy, highly charged ions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stockli, M.P.

1994-01-01

Atomically flat surfaces of insulators have been bombarded with low energy, highly charged ions to search for nanometer-size surface modifications. It is expected that the high electron deficiency of highly charged ions will capture and/or remove many of the insulator's localized electrons when impacting on an insulating surface. The resulting local electron deficiency is expected to locally disintegrate the insulator through a open-quotes Coulomb explosionclose quotes forming nanometer-size craters. Xe ions with charge states between 10+ and 45+ and kinetic energies between 0 and 10 keV/q were obtained from the KSU-CRYEBIS, a CRYogenic Electron Beam Ion Source and directed onto various insulating materials. Mica was favored as target material as atomically flat surfaces can be obtained reliably through cleaving. However, the authors observations with an atomic force microscope have shown that mica tends to defoliate locally rather than disintegrate, most likely due to the small binding forces between adjacent layers. So far the authors measurements indicate that each ion produces one blister if the charge state is sufficiently high. The blistering does not seem to depend very much on the kinetic energy of the ions

Ion surface collisions on surfaces relevant for fusion devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rasul, B.; Endstrasser, N.; Zappa, F.; Grill, V.; Scheier, P.; Mark, T.

2006-01-01

Full text: One of the great challenges of fusion research is the compatibility of reactor grade plasmas with plasma facing materials coating the inner walls of a fusion reactor. The question of which surface coating should be used is of particular interest for the design of ITER. The impact of energetic plasma particles leads to sputtering of wall material into the plasma. A possible solution for the coating of plasma facing walls would be the use of special carbon surfaces. Investigations of these various surfaces have been started at BESTOF ion-surface collision apparatus. Experiment beam of singly charged molecular ions of hydrocarbon molecules, i.e. C 2 H + 4 , is generated in a Nier-type electron impact ionization source at an electron energy of about 70 eV. In the first double focusing mass spectrometer the ions are mass and energy analyzed and afterwards refocused onto a surface. The secondary reaction products are monitored using a Time Of Flight mass spectrometer. The secondary ion mass spectra are recorded as a function of the collision energy for different projectile ions and different surfaces. A comparison of these spectra show for example distinct changes in the survival probability of the same projectile ion C 2 H + 4 for different surfaces. (author)

Surface characterization of polymethylmetacrylate bombarded by charged water droplets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hiraoka, Kenzo; Takaishi, Riou; Asakawa, Daiki; Sakai, Yuji; Iijima, Yoshitoki

2009-01-01

The electrospray droplet impact (EDI), in which the charged electrospray water droplets are introduced in vacuum, accelerated, and allowed to impact the sample, is applied to polymethylmetacrylate (PMMA). The secondary ions generated were measured by an orthogonal time-of-flight mass spectrometer. In EDI mass spectra for PMMA, fragment ions originating from PMMA could not be detected. This is due to the fact that the proton affinities of fragments formed from PMMA are smaller than those from acetic acid contained in the charged droplet. The x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy spectra of PMMA irradiated by water droplets did not change with prolonged cluster irradiation, i.e., EDI is capable of shallow surface etching for PMMA with a little damage of the sample underneath the surface.

Surface charges promote nonspecific nanoparticle adhesion to stiffer membranes

Science.gov (United States)

Sinha, Shayandev; Jing, Haoyuan; Sachar, Harnoor Singh; Das, Siddhartha

2018-04-01

This letter establishes the manner in which the electric double layer induced by the surface charges of the plasma membrane (PM) enhances the nonspecific adhesion (NSA) of a metal nanoparticle (NP) to stiffer PMs (i.e., PMs with larger bending moduli). The NSA is characterized by the physical attachment of the NP to the membrane and occurs when the decrease in the surface energy (or any other mechanism) associated with the attachment process provides the energy for bending the membrane. Such an attachment does not involve receptor-ligand interactions that characterize the specific membrane-NP adhesion. Here, we demonstrate that a significant decrease in the electrostatic energy caused by the NP-attachment-induced destruction of the charged-membrane-electrolyte interface is responsible for providing the additional energy needed for bending the membrane during the NP adhesion to stiffer membranes. A smaller salt concentration and a larger membrane charge density augment this effect, which can help to design drug delivery to cells with stiffer membranes due to pathological conditions, fabricate NPs with biomimetic cholesterol-rich lipid bilayer encapsulation, etc.

Influence of Surface Charge/Potential of a Gold Electrode on the Adsorptive/Desorptive Behaviour of Fibrinogen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dargahi, Mahdi; Konkov, Evgeny; Omanovic, Sasha

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Adsorptive/desorptive behavior of fibrinogen (FG) on an electrochemically-polarized gold substrate is reported. • The adsorption affinity of FG (afFG) is constant on a negatively-charged substrate surface. • The afFG increases linearly with an increase in positive substrate surface charge. • The FG adsorption kinetics is strongly dependant on substrate surface charge. • The adsorbed FG layer can be desorbed by electrochemical evolution of hydrogen and oxygen. - Abstract: The effect of gold substrate surface charge (potential) on adsorptive/desorptive behaviour of fibrinogen (FG) was studied by employing differential capacitance (DC) and polarization modulated infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS), in terms of FG adsorption thermodynamics, kinetics, and desorption kinetics. The gold substrate surface charge was modulated in-situ within the electrochemical double-layer region by means of electrochemical potentiostatic polarization in a FG-containing electrolyte, thus avoiding the interference of other physico-chemical properties of the gold surface on FG’s interfacial behaviour. The FG adsorption equilibrium was modeled using the Langmuir isotherm. Highly negative values of apparent Gibbs free energy of adsorption (ranging from from −52.1 ± 0.4 to −55.8 ± 0.8 kJ mol −1 , depending on the FG adsorption potential) indicated a highly spontaneous and strong adsorption of FG onto the gold surface. The apparent Gibbs free energy of adsorption was found to be independent of surface charge when the surface was negatively charged. However, when the gold surface was positively charged, the apparent Gibbs free energy of adsorption exhibited a pronounced linear relationship with the surface charge, shifting to more negative values with an increase in positive electrode potential. The adsorption kinetics of FG was also found to be dependent on gold surface charge in a similar manner to the apparent Gibbs free energy of adsorption

Blast wave interaction with a rigid surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Josey, T.; Whitehouse, D.R.; Ripley, R.C.; Dionne, J.P.

2004-01-01

A simple model used to investigate blast wave interactions with a rigid surface is presented. The model uses a constant volume energy source analogue to predict pressure histories at gauges located directly above the charge. A series of two-dimensional axi-symmetric CFD calculations were performed, varying the height of the charge relative to the ground. Pressure histories, along with isopycnic plots are presented to evaluate the effects of placing a charge in close proximity to a rigid surface. When a charge is placed near a solid surface the pressure histories experienced at gauges above the charge indicate the presence of two distinct pressure peaks. The first peak is caused by the primary shock and the second peak is a result of the wave reflections from the rigid surface. As the distance from the charge to the wall is increased the magnitude of the second pressure peak is reduced, provided that the distance between the charge and the gauge is maintained constant. The simple model presented is able to capture significant, predictable flow features. (author)

Modulating activity of vancomycin and daptomycin on the expression of autolysis cell-wall turnover and membrane charge genes in hVISA and VISA strains.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Viviana Cafiso

Full Text Available Glycopeptides are still the gold standard to treat MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections, but their widespread use has led to vancomycin-reduced susceptibility [heterogeneous Vancomycin-Intermediate-Staphylococcus aureus (hVISA and Vancomycin-Intermediate-Staphylococcus aureus (VISA], in which different genetic loci (regulatory, autolytic, cell-wall turnover and cell-envelope positive charge genes are involved. In addition, reduced susceptibility to vancomycin can influence the development of resistance to daptomycin. Although the phenotypic and molecular changes of hVISA/VISA have been the focus of different papers, the molecular mechanisms responsible for these different phenotypes and for the vancomycin and daptomycin cross-resistance are not clearly understood. The aim of our study was to investigate, by real time RT-PCR, the relative quantitative expression of genes involved in autolysis (atl-lytM, cell-wall turnover (sceD, membrane charges (mprF-dltA and regulatory mechanisms (agr-locus-graRS-walKR, in hVISA and VISA cultured with or without vancomycin and daptomycin, in order to better understand the molecular basis of vancomycin-reduced susceptibility and the modulating activity of vancomycin and daptomycin on the expression of genes implicated in their reduced susceptibility mechanisms. Our results show that hVISA and VISA present common features that distinguish them from Vancomycin-Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (VSSA, responsible for the intermediate glycopeptide resistance i.e. an increased cell-wall turnover, an increased positive cell-wall charge responsible for a repulsion mechanism towards vancomycin and daptomycin, and reduced agr-functionality. Indeed, VISA emerges from hVISA when VISA acquires a reduced autolysis caused by a down-regulation of autolysin genes, atl/lytM, and a reduction of the net negative cell-envelope charge via dltA over-expression. Vancomycin and daptomycin, acting in a similar

Surface-subsurface turbulent interaction at the interface of a permeable bed: influence of the wall permeability

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, T.; Blois, G.; Best, J.; Christensen, K. T.

2017-12-01

Coarse-gravel river beds possess a high degree of permeability. Flow interactions between surface and subsurface flow across the bed interface is key to a number of natural processes occurring in the hyporheic zone. In fact, it is increasingly recognized that these interactions drive mass, momentum and energy transport across the interface, and consequently control biochemical processes as well as stability of sediments. The current study explores the role of the wall permeability in surface and subsurface flow interaction under controlled experimental conditions on a physical model of a gravel bed. The present wall model was constructed by five layers of cubically arranged spheres (d=25.4mm, where d is a diameter) providing 48% of porosity. Surface topography was removed by cutting half of a diameter on the top layer of spheres to render the flow surface smooth and highlight the impact of the permeability on the overlying flow. An impermeable smooth wall was also considered as a baseline of comparison for the permeable wall flow. To obtain basic flow statistics, low-frame-rate high-resolution PIV measurements were performed first in the streamwise-wall-normal (x-y) plane and refractive-index matching was employed to optically access the flow within the permeable wall. Time-resolved PIV experiments in the same facility were followed to investigate the flow interaction across the wall interface in sptaio-temporal domain. In this paper, a detailed analysis of the first and second order velocity statistics as well as the amplitude modulation for the flow overlying the permeable smooth wall will be presented.

Ground Simulations of Near-Surface Plasma Field and Charging at the Lunar Terminator

Science.gov (United States)

Polansky, J.; Ding, N.; Wang, J.; Craven, P.; Schneider, T.; Vaughn, J.

2012-12-01

Charging in the lunar terminator region is the most complex and is still not well understood. In this region, the surface potential is sensitively influenced by both solar illumination and plasma flow. The combined effects from localized shadow generated by low sun elevation angles and localized wake generated by plasma flow over the rugged terrain can generate strongly differentially charged surfaces. Few models currently exist that can accurately resolve the combined effects of plasma flow and solar illumination over realistic lunar terminator topographies. This paper presents an experimental investigation of lunar surface charging at the terminator region in simulated plasma environments in a vacuum chamber. The solar wind plasma flow is simulated using an electron bombardment gridded Argon ion source. An electrostatic Langmuir probe, nude Faraday probes, a floating emissive probe, and retarding potential analyzer are used to quantify the plasma flow field. Surface potentials of both conducting and dielectric materials immersed in the plasma flow are measured with a Trek surface potential probe. The conducting material surface potential will simultaneously be measured with a high impedance voltmeter to calibrate the Trek probe. Measurement results will be presented for flat surfaces and objects-on-surface for various angles of attack of the plasma flow. The implications on the generation of localized plasma wake and surface charging at the lunar terminator will be discussed. (This research is supported by the NASA Lunar Advanced Science and Exploration Research program.)

Influence of radioactivity on surface charging and aggregation kinetics of particles in the atmosphere.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Yong-Ha; Yiacoumi, Sotira; Lee, Ida; McFarlane, Joanna; Tsouris, Costas

2014-01-01

Radioactivity can influence surface interactions, but its effects on particle aggregation kinetics have not been included in transport modeling of radioactive particles. In this research, experimental and theoretical studies have been performed to investigate the influence of radioactivity on surface charging and aggregation kinetics of radioactive particles in the atmosphere. Radioactivity-induced charging mechanisms have been investigated at the microscopic level, and heterogeneous surface potential caused by radioactivity is reported. The radioactivity-induced surface charging is highly influenced by several parameters, such as rate and type of radioactive decay. A population balance model, including interparticle forces, has been employed to study the effects of radioactivity on particle aggregation kinetics in air. It has been found that radioactivity can hinder aggregation of particles because of similar surface charging caused by the decay process. Experimental and theoretical studies provide useful insights into the understanding of transport characteristics of radioactive particles emitted from severe nuclear events, such as the recent accident of Fukushima or deliberate explosions of radiological devices.

Interaction of flexible surface hairs with near-wall turbulence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruecker, Ch

2011-01-01

The interaction of near-wall turbulence with hairy surfaces is investigated in a turbulent boundary layer flow along a flat plate in an oil channel at Re = 1.2 x 10 6 . The plate is covered locally with a dense carpet of elastomeric micro-hairs (length L = 1 mm, length in viscous units L + = 30) which are arranged in a regular grid (60 x 30 hairs with a streamwise spacing Δx + ∼15 and a spanwise spacing Δy + ∼30). Instead of the micro-structures used in previous studies for sensory applications, the surface hairs are considerably larger and much more densely distributed with a spacing of S/D < 5 such that they interact with each other by flow coupling. The non-fluctuating mean part of the flow forces a substantial pre-bending in the streamwise direction (reconfiguration). As a consequence, the hairs align with the streamwise direction, thus imposing anisotropic damping characteristics with regard to flow fluctuations in streamwise and spanwise or wall-normal directions. Near-wall high-frequency disturbances excited by the passage of turbulent sweeps are dampened over their course along the carpet. The cooperative action of the hairs leads to an energy transfer from small-scale motion to larger scales, thus increasing the coherence of the motion pattern in streamwise and spanwise directions. As a consequence of the specific arrangement of the micro-hairs in streamwise columns a reduced spanwise meandering and stabilization of the streamwise velocity streaks is achieved by promoting varicose waves and inhibiting sinusoidal waves. Streak stabilization is known to be a major contributor to turbulent drag reduction. Thus it is concluded that hairy surfaces may be of benefit for turbulent drag reduction as hypothesized by Bartenwerfer and Bechert (1991 Z. Flugwiss. Weltraumforsch. 15 19-26).

Modification of the large-scale features of high Reynolds number wall turbulence by passive surface obtrusions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Monty, J.P.; Lien, K.; Chong, M.S. [University of Melbourne, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Parkville, VIC (Australia); Allen, J.J. [New Mexico State University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Las Cruces, NM (United States)

2011-12-15

A high Reynolds number boundary-layer wind-tunnel facility at New Mexico State University was fitted with a regularly distributed braille surface. The surface was such that braille dots were closely packed in the streamwise direction and sparsely spaced in the spanwise direction. This novel surface had an unexpected influence on the flow: the energy of the very large-scale features of wall turbulence (approximately six-times the boundary-layer thickness in length) became significantly attenuated, even into the logarithmic region. To the author's knowledge, this is the first experimental study to report a modification of 'superstructures' in a rough-wall turbulent boundary layer. The result gives rise to the possibility that flow control through very small, passive surface roughness may be possible at high Reynolds numbers, without the prohibitive drag penalty anticipated heretofore. Evidence was also found for the uninhibited existence of the near-wall cycle, well known to smooth-wall-turbulence researchers, in the spanwise space between roughness elements. (orig.)

Mediated Electron Transfer at Vertically Aligned Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Electrodes During Detection of DNA Hybridization

Science.gov (United States)

Wallen, Rachel; Gokarn, Nirmal; Bercea, Priscila; Grzincic, Elissa; Bandyopadhyay, Krisanu

2015-06-01

Vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotube (VASWCNT) assemblies are generated on cysteamine and 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME)-functionalized gold surfaces through amide bond formation between carboxylic groups generated at the end of acid-shortened single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and amine groups present on the gold surfaces. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) imaging confirms the vertical alignment mode of SWCNT attachment through significant changes in surface roughness compared to bare gold surfaces and the lack of any horizontally aligned SWCNTs present. These SWCNT assemblies are further modified with an amine-terminated single-stranded probe-DNA. Subsequent hybridization of the surface-bound probe-DNA in the presence of complementary strands in solution is followed using impedance measurements in the presence of Fe(CN)6 3-/4- as the redox probe in solution, which show changes in the interfacial electrochemical properties, specifically the charge-transfer resistance, due to hybridization. In addition, hybridization of the probe-DNA is also compared when it is attached directly to the gold surfaces without any intermediary SWCNTs. Contrary to our expectations, impedance measurements show a decrease in charge-transfer resistance with time due to hybridization with 300 nM complementary DNA in solution with the probe-DNA attached to SWCNTs. In contrast, an increase in charge-transfer resistance is observed with time during hybridization when the probe-DNA is attached directly to the gold surfaces. The decrease in charge-transfer resistance during hybridization in the presence of VASWCNTs indicates an enhancement in the electron transfer process of the redox probe at the VASWCNT-modified electrode. The results suggest that VASWCNTs are acting as mediators of electron transfer, which facilitate the charge transfer of the redox probe at the electrode-solution interface.

Charge pumping in InAs nanowires by surface acoustic waves

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Roddaro, Stefano; Strambini, Elia; Romeo, Lorenzo; Piazza, Vincenzo; Nilsson, Kristian; Samuelson, Lars; Beltram, Fabio

2010-01-01

We investigate the interaction between surface acoustic waves on a piezoelectric LiNbO3 substrate and charge carriers in InAs nanowire transistors. Interdigital transducers are used to excite electromechanical waves on the chip surface and their influence on the transport in the nanowire devices is

Dependence of Lunar Surface Charging on Solar Wind Plasma Conditions and Solar Irradiation

Science.gov (United States)

Stubbs, T. J.; Farrell, W. M.; Halekas, J. S.; Burchill, J. K.; Collier, M. R.; Zimmerman, M. I.; Vondrak, R. R.; Delory, G. T.; Pfaff, R. F.

2014-01-01

The surface of the Moon is electrically charged by exposure to solar radiation on its dayside, as well as by the continuous flux of charged particles from the various plasma environments that surround it. An electric potential develops between the lunar surface and ambient plasma, which manifests itself in a near-surface plasma sheath with a scale height of order the Debye length. This study investigates surface charging on the lunar dayside and near-terminator regions in the solar wind, for which the dominant current sources are usually from the pohotoemission of electrons, J(sub p), and the collection of plasma electrons J(sub e) and ions J(sub i). These currents are dependent on the following six parameters: plasma concentration n(sub 0), electron temperature T(sub e), ion temperature T(sub i), bulk flow velocity V, photoemission current at normal incidence J(sub P0), and photo electron temperature T(sub p). Using a numerical model, derived from a set of eleven basic assumptions, the influence of these six parameters on surface charging - characterized by the equilibrium surface potential, Debye length, and surface electric field - is investigated as a function of solar zenith angle. Overall, T(sub e) is the most important parameter, especially near the terminator, while J(sub P0) and T(sub p) dominate over most of the dayside.

Dielectrophoretic deformation of thin liquid films induced by surface charge patterns on dielectric substrates

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Berendsen, C.W.J.; Kuijpers, C.J.; Zeegers, J.C.H.; Darhuber, A.A.

2013-01-01

We studied the deformation of thin liquid films induced by surface charge patterns at the solid–liquid interface quantitatively by experiments and numerical simulations. We deposited a surface charge distribution on dielectric substrates by applying potential differences between a conductive liquid

Proton surface charge determination in Spodosol horizons with organically bound aluminum

Science.gov (United States)

Skyllberg, Ulf; Borggaard, Ole K.

1998-05-01

Net proton surface charge densities were determined in O, E, Bh, and Bs horizons of a sandy till, Spodosol from Denmark, by means of acid-base titration combined with ion adsorption in 0.005 M Ca(NO 3) 2 and independent permanent charge determination. The release of organic anions exceeded the adsorption of NO 3-, resulting in a desorption of anions in all horizons. Data were found to obey the law of balance between surface charges and adsorbed ions only when charges pertaining to Al and organic anions released during the titration experiments were accounted for, in addition to charges pertaining the potential determining ions (PDI) H + and OH - and the index ions Ca 2+ and NO 3-. It was furthermore shown that the point of zero net proton charge (PZNPC) in soils highly depends on the concentration of organically bound Al. Approaches previously used in soils, in which adsorbed Al n+ has been ignored (i.e., considered equivalent to nH + as a PDI), resulted in a PZNPC of 4.1 in the Bs horizon. If instead organically bound Al was accounted for as a counter-ion similar to 3/2Ca 2+, a PZNPC of 2.9 was obtained for the same Bs horizon. Based on PZNPC values estimated by the latter approach, combined with a weak-acid analog, it was shown that organic proton surface charges buffered pH with a similar intensity in the O, E, Bh, and Bs horizons of this study. Because the acidity of Al adsorbed to conjugate bases of soil organic acids is substantially weaker than the acidity of the corresponding protonated form of the organic acids, the point of zero net proton charge (PZNPC) will increase if the concentration of organically adsorbed Al increases at the expense of adsorbed H. This means that PZNPC values determined for soils with unknown concentrations of organically adsorbed Al are highly operational and not very meaningful as references.

Unipolar charging of nanoparticles by the Surface-discharge Microplasma Aerosol Charger (SMAC)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kwon, Soon-Bark; Sakurai, Hiromu; Seto, Takafumi

2007-01-01

In this paper, we report the development of a novel unipolar charger for nanoparticles, a system that achieves low particle loss and high charging efficiency without the use of sheath air. The efficient unipolar charging of the system is realized mainly by the surface-discharge microplasma unit, a device previously applied with good success to the neutralization or charging of submicron particles [Kwon et al., 2005, Aerosol Sci. Technol., 39, 987-1001; 2006, J. Aerosol Sci., 37, 483-499]. The unipolar charger generates unipolar ions using the surface discharge of a single electrode with a DC pulse supply. This marks an advance from our previous method of generating bipolar ions with the use of dual electrodes in earlier studies. We evaluated the efficiency of the penetration (or loss) and charging of nanoparticles in the size range of 3-15 nm, then compared the charging efficiencies measured with those predicted by diffusion charging theory. More than 90% of inlet nanoparticles penetrated the charger (less than 10% of the particle were lost) without the use of sheath air. Other chargers have only realized this high penetration efficiency by relying on sheath air flow. Moreover, the measured charging efficiencies agreed well with those predicted by diffusion charging theory and were somewhat higher and more size-dependent than the charging efficiencies of other nanoparticle chargers

Solvation of excess electrons trapped in charge pockets on molecular surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Jalbout, Abraham F.

This work considers the ability of hydrogen fluoride (HF) to solvate excess electrons located on cyclic hydrocarbon surfaces. The principle applied involves the formation of systems in which excess electrons can be stabilized not only on concentrated molecular surface charge pockets but also by HF. Recent studies have shown that OH groups can form stable hydrogen-bonded networks on one side of a hydrocarbon surface (i.e. cyclohexane sheets), at the same time, the hydrogen atoms on the opposite side of this surface form a pocket of positive charge can attract the excess electron. This density can be further stabilized by the addition of an HF molecule that can form an 'anion with an internally solvated electron' (AISE) state. These systems are shown to be stable with respect to vertical electron detachment (VDE).

Visualization of single-wall carbon nanotube (SWNT) networks in conductive polystyrene nanocomposites by charge contrast imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loos, Joachim; Alexeev, Alexander; Grossiord, Nadia; Koning, Cor E.; Regev, Oren

2005-01-01

The morphology of conductive nanocomposites consisting of low concentration of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT) and polystyrene (PS) has been studied using atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and, in particular, scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Application of charge contrast imaging in SEM allows visualization of the overall SWNT dispersion within the polymer matrix as well as the identification of individual or bundled SWNTs at high resolution. The contrast mechanism involved will be discussed. In conductive nanocomposites the SWNTs are homogeneously dispersed within the polymer matrix and form a network. Beside fairly straight SWNTs, strongly bended SWNTs have been observed. However, for samples with SWNT concentrations below the percolation threshold, the common overall charging behavior of an insulating material is observed preventing the detailed morphological investigation of the sample

Probing the Surface Charge on the Basal Planes of Kaolinite Particles with High-Resolution Atomic Force Microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, N; Andersson, M P; van den Ende, D; Mugele, F; Siretanu, I

2017-12-19

High-resolution atomic force microscopy is used to map the surface charge on the basal planes of kaolinite nanoparticles in an ambient solution of variable pH and NaCl or CaCl 2 concentration. Using DLVO theory with charge regulation, we determine from the measured force-distance curves the surface charge distribution on both the silica-like and the gibbsite-like basal plane of the kaolinite particles. We observe that both basal planes do carry charge that varies with pH and salt concentration. The silica facet was found to be negatively charged at pH 4 and above, whereas the gibbsite facet is positively charged at pH below 7 and negatively charged at pH above 7. Investigations in CaCl 2 at pH 6 show that the surface charge on the gibbsite facet increases for concentration up to 10 mM CaCl 2 and starts to decrease upon further increasing the salt concentration to 50 mM. The increase of surface charge at low concentration is explained by Ca 2+ ion adsorption, while Cl - adsorption at higher CaCl 2 concentrations partially neutralizes the surface charge. Atomic resolution imaging and density functional theory calculations corroborate these observations. They show that hydrated Ca 2+ ions can spontaneously adsorb on the gibbsite facet of the kaolinite particle and form ordered surface structures, while at higher concentrations Cl - ions will co-adsorb, thereby changing the observed ordered surface structure.

Low-Z material for limiters and wall surfaces in JET: beryllium and carbon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rebut, P.H.; Hugon, M.; Booth, S.J.; Dean, J.R.; Dietz, K.J.; Sonnenberg, K.; Watkins, M.L.

1985-01-01

The relative merits of graphite and beryllium, as a low-Z material for limiters and wall surfaces in JET, are compared. A consideration of data on thermomechanical properties, retention of hydrogen and gettering action, indicates that beryllium offers the best prospects as a material for the JET belt limiters and walls. (U.K.)

The impact of nano-coating on surface charge accumulation of epoxy resin insulator: characteristic and mechanism

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Bo; Gao, Chunjia; Lv, Yuzhen; Li, Chengrong; Tu, Youping; Xiong, Jun

2018-06-01

The flashover phenomenon of the insulator is the main cause for insulating failure of GIS/GIL, and one of the most critical impacting factors is the accumulation of surface charge. The common methods to restrain the surface charge accumulation are reviewed in this paper. Through the reasonable comparison and analysis of these methods, nano-coatings for the insulator were selected as a way to restrain the surface charge accumulation. Based on this, six nano-coated epoxy resin samples with different concentrations of P25-TiO2 nanoparticles were produced. A high precision 3D surface charge measurement system was developed in this paper with a spatial resolution of 4.0 mm2 and a charge resolution of 0.01 µC (m2 · mV)‑1. The experimental results for the epoxy resin sample showed that with the concentration of nanoparticles of the coating material increasing, the surface charge density tended to first decrease and then increase. In the sample coated with 0.5% concentration of nanoparticles, the suppression effect is the optimum, leading to a 63.8% reduction of charge density under DC voltage. The application test for actual nano-coated GIS/GIL basin insulator indicated that the maximum suppression degree for the charge density under DC voltage could reach 48.3%, while it could reach 22.2% for switching impulse voltage and 12.5% for AC context. The control mechanism of nano-coatings on charge accumulation was proposed based on the analysis for surface morphology features and traps characteristics; the shallow traps dominate in the migration of charges while the deep traps operate on the charge accumulation. With the concentration of nanoparticles in nano-coating material mounting up, the density of shallow traps continuously increases, while for deep traps, it first decreases and then increases. For the sample with 0.5% concentration of nanoparticles coated, the competition between shallow traps and deep traps comes to the most balanced state, producing the most

Phase transition detection by surface photo charge effect in liquid crystals

Science.gov (United States)

Ivanov, O.; Petrov, M.; Naradikian, H.; Perez-Diaz, J. L.

2018-05-01

The surface photo charge effect (SPCE) was applied for the first time at structure and phase transitions study of hydrogen bonded in dimer liquid crystals (HBDLCs). Due to the high sensitivity of this method, besides first-order phase transitions, characteristic for the p,n-octyloxibenzoic acids (8OBA), an order transition was definitely detected within the nematic range. We state that the SPCE, arising at the solid-HBDLCs interface due to the double electrical layer, is invariably concomitant with solid surface-liquid interfaces, and indicates that the changes of the characteristics of this layer, under incident optical irradiation, induce surface charge rearrangement and alternating potential difference. A mechanism of induction of the SPCE at the interface of solid surface-anisotropic liquids is proposed. We also indicate that this mechanism can be adapted for solid surface-isotropic liquid interface, including colloids (milk) and fog (aerosols)-condensed medium.

Constructing irregular surfaces to enclose macromolecular complexes for mesoscale modeling using the discrete surface charge optimization (DISCO) algorithm.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Qing; Beard, Daniel A; Schlick, Tamar

2003-12-01

Salt-mediated electrostatics interactions play an essential role in biomolecular structures and dynamics. Because macromolecular systems modeled at atomic resolution contain thousands of solute atoms, the electrostatic computations constitute an expensive part of the force and energy calculations. Implicit solvent models are one way to simplify the model and associated calculations, but they are generally used in combination with standard atomic models for the solute. To approximate electrostatics interactions in models on the polymer level (e.g., supercoiled DNA) that are simulated over long times (e.g., milliseconds) using Brownian dynamics, Beard and Schlick have developed the DiSCO (Discrete Surface Charge Optimization) algorithm. DiSCO represents a macromolecular complex by a few hundred discrete charges on a surface enclosing the system modeled by the Debye-Hückel (screened Coulombic) approximation to the Poisson-Boltzmann equation, and treats the salt solution as continuum solvation. DiSCO can represent the nucleosome core particle (>12,000 atoms), for example, by 353 discrete surface charges distributed on the surfaces of a large disk for the nucleosome core particle and a slender cylinder for the histone tail; the charges are optimized with respect to the Poisson-Boltzmann solution for the electric field, yielding a approximately 5.5% residual. Because regular surfaces enclosing macromolecules are not sufficiently general and may be suboptimal for certain systems, we develop a general method to construct irregular models tailored to the geometry of macromolecules. We also compare charge optimization based on both the electric field and electrostatic potential refinement. Results indicate that irregular surfaces can lead to a more accurate approximation (lower residuals), and the refinement in terms of the electric field is more robust. We also show that surface smoothing for irregular models is important, that the charge optimization (by the TNPACK

Probing surface charge potentials of clay basal planes and edges by direct force measurements.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Hongying; Bhattacharjee, Subir; Chow, Ross; Wallace, Dean; Masliyah, Jacob H; Xu, Zhenghe

2008-11-18

The dispersion and gelation of clay suspensions have major impact on a number of industries, such as ceramic and composite materials processing, paper making, cement production, and consumer product formulation. To fundamentally understand controlling mechanisms of clay dispersion and gelation, it is necessary to study anisotropic surface charge properties and colloidal interactions of clay particles. In this study, a colloidal probe technique was employed to study the interaction forces between a silica probe and clay basal plane/edge surfaces. A muscovite mica was used as a representative of 2:1 phyllosilicate clay minerals. The muscovite basal plane was prepared by cleavage, while the edge surface was obtained by a microtome cutting technique. Direct force measurements demonstrated the anisotropic surface charge properties of the basal plane and edge surface. For the basal plane, the long-range forces were monotonically repulsive within pH 6-10 and the measured forces were pH-independent, thereby confirming that clay basal planes have permanent surface charge from isomorphic substitution of lattice elements. The measured interaction forces were fitted well with the classical DLVO theory. The surface potentials of muscovite basal plane derived from the measured force profiles were in good agreement with those reported in the literature. In the case of edge surfaces, the measured forces were monotonically repulsive at pH 10, decreasing with pH, and changed to be attractive at pH 5.6, strongly suggesting that the charge on the clay edge surfaces is pH-dependent. The measured force profiles could not be reasonably fitted with the classical DLVO theory, even with very small surface potential values, unless the surface roughness was considered. The surface element integration (SEI) method was used to calculate the DLVO forces to account for the surface roughness. The surface potentials of the muscovite edges were derived by fitting the measured force profiles with the

Photocatalytic surface reactions on indoor wall paint.

Science.gov (United States)

Salthammer, T; Fuhrmann, F

2007-09-15

The reduction of indoor air pollutants by air cleaning systems has received considerable interest, and a number of techniques are now available. So far, the method of photocatalysis was mainly applied by use of titanium dioxide (TiO2) in flow reactors under UV light of high intensity. Nowadays, indoor wall paints are equipped with modified TiO2 to work as a catalyst under indoor daylight or artificial light. In chamber experiments carried out under indoor related conditions itwas shown thatthe method works for nitrogen dioxide with air exchange and for formaldehyde without air exchange at high concentrations. In further experiments with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), a small effect was found for terpenoids with high kOH rate constants. For other VOCs and carbon monoxide there was no degradation at all or the surface acted as a reversible sink. Secondary emissions from the reaction of paint constituents were observed on exposure to light. From the results it is concluded that recipes of photocatalytic wall paints need to be optimized for better efficiency under indoor conditions.

Dynamical interaction of He atoms with metal surfaces: Charge transfer processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Flores, F.; Garcia Vidal, F.J.; Monreal, R.

1993-01-01

A self-consistent Kohn-Sham LCAO method is presented to calculate the charge transfer processes between a He * -atom and metal surfaces. Intra-atomic correlation effects are taken into account by considering independently each single He-orbital and by combining the different charge transfer processes into a set of dynamical rate equations for the different ion charge fractions. Our discussion reproduces qualitatively the experimental evidence and gives strong support to the method presented here. (author). 24 refs, 4 figs

Effect of laundry surfactants on surface charge and colloidal stability of silver nanoparticles.

Science.gov (United States)

Skoglund, Sara; Lowe, Troy A; Hedberg, Jonas; Blomberg, Eva; Wallinder, Inger Odnevall; Wold, Susanna; Lundin, Maria

2013-07-16

The stability of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) potentially released from clothing during a laundry cycle and their interactions with laundry-relevant surfactants [anionic (LAS), cationic (DTAC), and nonionic (Berol)] have been investigated. Surface interactions between Ag NPs and surfactants influence their speciation and stability. In the absence of surfactants as well as in the presence of LAS, the negatively charged Ag NPs were stable in solution for more than 1 day. At low DTAC concentrations (≤1 mM), DTAC-Ag NP interactions resulted in charge neutralization and formation of agglomerates. The surface charge of the particles became positive at higher concentrations due to a bilayer type formation of DTAC that prevents from agglomeration due to repulsive electrostatic forces between the positively charged colloids. The adsorption of Berol was enhanced when above its critical micelle concentration (cmc). This resulted in a surface charge close to zero and subsequent agglomeration. Extended DLVO theory calculations were in compliance with observed findings. The stability of the Ag NPs was shown to depend on the charge and concentration of the adsorbed surfactants. Such knowledge is important as it may influence the subsequent transport of Ag NPs through different chemical transients and thus their potential bioavailability and toxicity.

Identification of the Heat Transfer Coefficient at the Charge Surface Heated on the Chamber Furnace

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gołdasz A.

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The inverse method was applied to determine the heat flux reaching the charge surface. The inverse solution was based upon finding the minimum of the error norm between the measured and calculated temperatures. The charge temperature field was calculated with the finite element method by solving the heat transfer equation for a square charge made of 15HM steel heated on all its surfaces. On the basis of the mean value of heat flux, the value of the heat transfer coefficient at each surface was determined depending on the surface temperature of the material heated.

The role of surface charge on the uptake and biocompatibility of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles with osteoblast cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen Liang; Mccrate, Joseph M; Li Hao [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211 (United States); Lee, James C-M, E-mail: liha@missouri.edu [Department of Biological Engineering, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211 (United States)

2011-03-11

The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of hydroxyapatite (HAP) nanoparticles with different surface charges on the cellular uptake behavior and in vitro cell viability and proliferation of MC3T3-E1 cell lines (osteoblast). The nanoparticles' surface charge was varied by surface modification with two carboxylic acids: 12-aminododecanoic acid (positive) and dodecanedioic acid (negative). The untreated HAP nanoparticles and dodecanoic acid modified HAP nanoparticles (neutral) were used as the control. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed that surface modifications by the three carboxylic acids did not change the crystal structure of HAP nanoparticles; Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) confirmed the adsorption and binding of the carboxylic acids on the HAP nanoparticles' surfaces; and zeta potential measurement confirmed that the chemicals successfully modified the surface charge of HAP nanoparticles in water based solution. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images showed that positively charged, negatively charged and untreated HAP nanoparticles, with similar size and shape, all penetrated into the cells and cells had more uptake of HAP nanoparticles with positive charge compared to those with negative charge, which might be attributed to the attractive or repulsive interaction between the negatively charged cell membrane and positively/negatively charged HAP nanoparticles. The neutral HAP nanoparticles could not penetrate the cell membrane due to their larger size. MTT assay and LDH assay results indicated that as compared with the polystyrene control, greater cell viability and cell proliferation were measured on MC3T3-E1 cells treated with the three kinds of HAP nanoparticles (neutral, positive, and untreated), among which positively charged HAP nanoparticles showed the strongest improvement for cell viability and cell proliferation. In summary, the surface charge of HAP nanoparticles can be modified to influence the cellular

The role of surface charge on the uptake and biocompatibility of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles with osteoblast cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Liang; Mccrate, Joseph M; Li Hao; Lee, James C-M

2011-01-01

The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of hydroxyapatite (HAP) nanoparticles with different surface charges on the cellular uptake behavior and in vitro cell viability and proliferation of MC3T3-E1 cell lines (osteoblast). The nanoparticles' surface charge was varied by surface modification with two carboxylic acids: 12-aminododecanoic acid (positive) and dodecanedioic acid (negative). The untreated HAP nanoparticles and dodecanoic acid modified HAP nanoparticles (neutral) were used as the control. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed that surface modifications by the three carboxylic acids did not change the crystal structure of HAP nanoparticles; Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) confirmed the adsorption and binding of the carboxylic acids on the HAP nanoparticles' surfaces; and zeta potential measurement confirmed that the chemicals successfully modified the surface charge of HAP nanoparticles in water based solution. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images showed that positively charged, negatively charged and untreated HAP nanoparticles, with similar size and shape, all penetrated into the cells and cells had more uptake of HAP nanoparticles with positive charge compared to those with negative charge, which might be attributed to the attractive or repulsive interaction between the negatively charged cell membrane and positively/negatively charged HAP nanoparticles. The neutral HAP nanoparticles could not penetrate the cell membrane due to their larger size. MTT assay and LDH assay results indicated that as compared with the polystyrene control, greater cell viability and cell proliferation were measured on MC3T3-E1 cells treated with the three kinds of HAP nanoparticles (neutral, positive, and untreated), among which positively charged HAP nanoparticles showed the strongest improvement for cell viability and cell proliferation. In summary, the surface charge of HAP nanoparticles can be modified to influence the cellular uptake of

Bioactive surface modifications on inner walls of poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene tubes using dielectric barrier discharge

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cho, Yong Ki [Department of Physics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746 (Korea, Republic of); Heat Treatment and Surface Engineering R and D Group, Korea Institute of Industrial Technology, Incheon 406-840 (Korea, Republic of); Park, Daewon; Kim, Hoonbae [Department of Physics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746 (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Hyerim; Park, Heonyong [Department of Molecular Biology, Dankook University, Yongin 448-701 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Hong Ja [Department of Internal Medicine, Dankook University, Cheonan 330-714 (Korea, Republic of); Jung, Donggeun, E-mail: djung@skku.ac.kr [Department of Physics, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746 (Korea, Republic of)

2014-03-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • The surface modification of the inner walls of poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene (PTFE) tubing was carried out to improve vascular grafts. • Focus was centered on the cell attachment of the inner wall of the PTFE by sequential processes of hydrogen plasma treatment, hydrocarbon deposition, and reactive plasma treatment using micro plasma discharge. - Abstract: Bioactive surface modification can be used in a variety of medical polymeric materials in the fields of biochips and biosensors, artificial membranes, and vascular grafts. In this study, the surface modification of the inner walls of poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene (PTFE) tubing was carried out to improve vascular grafts, which are made of biocompatible material for the human body in the medical field. Focus was centered on the cell attachment of the inner wall of the PTFE by sequential processes of hydrogen plasma treatment, hydrocarbon deposition, and reactive plasma treatment on the PFTE surface using micro plasma discharge. Micro plasma was generated by a medium-frequency alternating current high-voltage generator. The preliminary modification of PTFE was conducted by a plasma of hydrogen and argon gases. The hydrocarbon thin film was deposited on modified PTFE with a mixture of acetylene and argon gases. The reactive plasma treatment using oxygen plasma was done to give biocompatible functionality to the inner wall surface. The hydrophobic surface of bare PTFE is made hydrophilic by the reactive plasma treatment due to the formation of carbonyl groups on the surface. The reactive treatment could lead to improved attachment of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) on the modified PTFE tubing. Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and water contact angle measurement were used for the analysis of the surface modification. The SMC-attached PTFE tube developed will be applicable to in vitro human vasculature

Bioactive surface modifications on inner walls of poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene tubes using dielectric barrier discharge

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Yong Ki; Park, Daewon; Kim, Hoonbae; Lee, Hyerim; Park, Heonyong; Kim, Hong Ja; Jung, Donggeun

2014-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • The surface modification of the inner walls of poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene (PTFE) tubing was carried out to improve vascular grafts. • Focus was centered on the cell attachment of the inner wall of the PTFE by sequential processes of hydrogen plasma treatment, hydrocarbon deposition, and reactive plasma treatment using micro plasma discharge. - Abstract: Bioactive surface modification can be used in a variety of medical polymeric materials in the fields of biochips and biosensors, artificial membranes, and vascular grafts. In this study, the surface modification of the inner walls of poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene (PTFE) tubing was carried out to improve vascular grafts, which are made of biocompatible material for the human body in the medical field. Focus was centered on the cell attachment of the inner wall of the PTFE by sequential processes of hydrogen plasma treatment, hydrocarbon deposition, and reactive plasma treatment on the PFTE surface using micro plasma discharge. Micro plasma was generated by a medium-frequency alternating current high-voltage generator. The preliminary modification of PTFE was conducted by a plasma of hydrogen and argon gases. The hydrocarbon thin film was deposited on modified PTFE with a mixture of acetylene and argon gases. The reactive plasma treatment using oxygen plasma was done to give biocompatible functionality to the inner wall surface. The hydrophobic surface of bare PTFE is made hydrophilic by the reactive plasma treatment due to the formation of carbonyl groups on the surface. The reactive treatment could lead to improved attachment of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) on the modified PTFE tubing. Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and water contact angle measurement were used for the analysis of the surface modification. The SMC-attached PTFE tube developed will be applicable to in vitro human vasculature

Measurement and modification of first-wall surface composition in the Oak Ridge Tokamak (ORMAK)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clausing, R.E.; Emerson, L.C.; Heatherly, L.; Colchin, R.J.; Twichell, J.C.

1975-01-01

Impurities coming into the plasma from the walls of present-day toroidal plasma confinement devices modify plasma behavior substantially. Small fractions of high-Z ions in the plasma greatly decrease plasma temperatures and increase plasma energy losses. Impurities from the ''first-wall'' in ORMAK were studied. Auger electron spectroscopy, soft x-ray appearance potential spectroscopy, and other surface sensitive techniques were used to characterize the surface composition of the first wall and to develop methods to remove carbon and oxygen. Oxygen glow discharge cleaning has been shown, in the laboratory, to be an effective way of removing carbon from gold films (simulated ORMAK linear material) and the use of oxygen discharge cleaning in ORMAK has resulted in a decrease in plasma contamination, a 50 percent increase in plasma current and an accompanying increase in plasma temperature. In spite of these improvements the walls of ORMAK are far from clean. Substantial amounts of carbon, oxygen, iron and other elements remain. (auth)

Charging effects and surface potential variations of Cu-based nanowires

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nunes, D., E-mail: daniela.gomes@fct.unl.pt [i3N/CENIMAT, Department of Materials Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica (Portugal); Calmeiro, T.R.; Nandy, S.; Pinto, J.V.; Pimentel, A.; Barquinha, P. [i3N/CENIMAT, Department of Materials Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica (Portugal); Carvalho, P.A. [SINTEF Materials and Chemistry, PB 124 Blindern, NO-0314, Oslo (Norway); CeFEMA, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, 1049-001, Lisboa (Portugal); Walmsley, J.C. [SINTEF Materials and Chemistry, Materials and Nanotechnology, Høgskoleringen 5, 7034 Trondheim (Norway); Fortunato, E., E-mail: emf@fct.unl.pt [i3N/CENIMAT, Department of Materials Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica (Portugal); Martins, R., E-mail: rm@uninova.pt [i3N/CENIMAT, Department of Materials Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica (Portugal)

2016-02-29

The present work reports charging effects and surface potential variations in pure copper, cuprous oxide and cupric oxide nanowires observed by electrostatic force microscopy (EFM) and Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM). The copper nanowires were produced by wet synthesis, oxidation into cuprous oxide nanowires was achieved through microwave irradiation and cupric oxide nanowires were obtained via furnace annealing in atmospheric conditions. Structural characterization of the nanowires was carried out by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. During the EFM experiments the electrostatic field of the positive probe charged negatively the Cu-based nanowires, which in turn polarized the SiO{sub 2} dielectric substrate. Both the probe/nanowire capacitance as well as the substrate polarization increased with the applied bias. Cu{sub 2}O and CuO nanowires behaved distinctively during the EFM measurements in accordance with their band gap energies. The work functions (WF) of the Cu-based nanowires, obtained by KPFM measurements, yielded WF{sub CuO} > WF{sub Cu} > WF{sub Cu{sub 2O}}. - Highlights: • Charge distribution study in Cu, Cu{sub 2}O and CuO nanowires through electrostatic force microscopy • Structural/surface defect role on the charge distribution along the Cu nanowires • Determination of the nanowire work functions by Kelvin probe force microscopy • Three types of nanowires give a broad idea of charge behavior on Cu based-nanowires.

Enhanced charging kinetics of porous electrodes: surface conduction as a short-circuit mechanism.

Science.gov (United States)

Mirzadeh, Mohammad; Gibou, Frederic; Squires, Todd M

2014-08-29

We use direct numerical simulations of the Poisson-Nernst-Planck equations to study the charging kinetics of porous electrodes and to evaluate the predictive capabilities of effective circuit models, both linear and nonlinear. The classic transmission line theory of de Levie holds for general electrode morphologies, but only at low applied potentials. Charging dynamics are slowed appreciably at high potentials, yet not as significantly as predicted by the nonlinear transmission line model of Biesheuvel and Bazant. We identify surface conduction as a mechanism which can effectively "short circuit" the high-resistance electrolyte in the bulk of the pores, thus accelerating the charging dynamics and boosting power densities. Notably, the boost in power density holds only for electrode morphologies with continuous conducting surfaces in the charging direction.

In situ measurement of fixed charge evolution at silicon surfaces during atomic layer deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ju, Ling; Watt, Morgan R.; Strandwitz, Nicholas C.

2015-01-01

Interfacial fixed charge or interfacial dipoles are present at many semiconductor-dielectric interfaces and have important effects upon device behavior, yet the chemical origins of these electrostatic phenomena are not fully understood. We report the measurement of changes in Si channel conduction in situ during atomic layer deposition (ALD) of aluminum oxide using trimethylaluminum and water to probe changes in surface electrostatics. Current-voltage data were acquired continually before, during, and after the self-limiting chemical reactions that result in film growth. Our measurements indicated an increase in conductance on p-type samples with p + ohmic contacts and a decrease in conductance on analogous n-type samples. Further, p + contacted samples with n-type channels exhibited an increase in measured current and n + contacted p-type samples exhibited a decrease in current under applied voltage. Device physics simulations, where a fixed surface charge was parameterized on the channel surface, connect the surface charge to changes in current-voltage behavior. The simulations and analogous analytical relationships for near-surface conductance were used to explain the experimental results. Specifically, the changes in current-voltage behavior can be attributed to the formation of a fixed negative charge or the modification of a surface dipole upon chemisorption of trimethylaluminum. These measurements allow for the observation of fixed charge or dipole formation during ALD and provide further insight into the electrostatic behavior at semiconductor-dielectric interfaces during film nucleation

Mapping of the seasonal dynamic properties of building walls in actual periodic conditions and effects produced by solar radiation incident on the outer and inner surfaces of the wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazzeo, D.; Oliveti, G.; Arcuri, N.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Dynamic thermal behaviour of building walls subjected to actual periodic loadings. • Dynamic parameters of wall in terms of energy and of heat flux are defined. • Different solar absorption coefficients and orientations of wall are considered. • On the internal surface is present or absent a shortwave radiant field. • Seasonal thermal characteristics for different plant operating regime are provided. - Abstract: In this work, the dynamic characteristics of the external walls of air-conditioned buildings subject to the joint action of periodic non-sinusoidal external and internal loadings are determined. The dynamic parameters used are the energy decrement factor, which is evaluated by means of the fluctuating heat flux in a semi-period exiting and entering the wall, the decrement factor of the maximum peak and minimum peak of the heat flux in a period and the relative time lags. The fluctuating heat flux in the wall in steady periodic regime conditions is determined with an analytical model obtained by resolving the equivalent electrical circuit. The preceding parameters are used for a study of the influence of solar radiation on the dynamic characteristics of the walls in summer and winter air-conditioning. Solar radiation is considered as operating on the external surface and on the internal surface due to the presence in the indoor environments of a shortwave radiant field. The absorbed solar heat flux by the external surface varies, modifying the solar absorption coefficient and wall orientation. Indoors, we considered a continuous operating regime of the plant and a regime with nocturnal attenuation. The results obtained, relating to 1152 different boundary conditions, were used for the construction of maps of dynamic characteristics, different on variation of the plant functioning regime and of the shortwave radiant load on the internal surface. The maps show the dependence of the decrement factors and of the time lags on variation of

Design of asymmetric particles containing a charged interior and a neutral surface charge: comparative study on in vivo circulation of polyelectrolyte microgels.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Kai; Xu, Jing; Luft, J Christopher; Tian, Shaomin; Raval, Jay S; DeSimone, Joseph M

2014-07-16

Lowering the modulus of hydrogel particles could enable them to bypass in vivo physical barriers that would otherwise filter particles with similar size but higher modulus. Incorporation of electrolyte moieties into the polymer network of hydrogel particles to increase the swelling ratio is a straightforward and quite efficient way to decrease the modulus. In addition, charged groups in hydrogel particles can also help secure cargoes. However, the distribution of charged groups on the surface of a particle can accelerate the clearance of particles. Herein, we developed a method to synthesize highly swollen microgels of precise size with near-neutral surface charge while retaining interior charged groups. A strategy was employed to enable a particle to be highly cross-linked with very small mesh size, and subsequently PEGylated to quench the exterior amines only without affecting the internal amines. Acidic degradation of the cross-linker allows for swelling of the particles to microgels with a desired size and deformability. The microgels fabricated demonstrated extended circulation in vivo compared to their counterparts with a charged surface, and could potentially be utilized in in vivo applications including as oxygen carriers or nucleic acid scavengers.

Surface Charge Transfer Doping of Monolayer Phosphorene via Molecular Adsorption.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Yuanyuan; Xia, Feifei; Shao, Zhibin; Zhao, Jianwei; Jie, Jiansheng

2015-12-03

Monolayer phosphorene has attracted much attention owing to its extraordinary electronic, optical, and structural properties. Rationally tuning the electrical transport characteristics of monolayer phosphorene is essential to its applications in electronic and optoelectronic devices. Herein, we study the electronic transport behaviors of monolayer phosphorene with surface charge transfer doping of electrophilic molecules, including 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethane (F4TCNQ), NO2, and MoO3, using density functional theory combined with the nonequilibrium Green's function formalism. F4TCNQ shows optimal performance in enhancing the p-type conductance of monolayer phosphorene. Static electronic properties indicate that the enhancement is originated from the charge transfer between adsorbed molecule and phosphorene layer. Dynamic transport behaviors demonstrate that additional channels for hole transport in host monolayer phosphorene were generated upon the adsorption of molecule. Our work unveils the great potential of surface charge transfer doping in tuning the electronic properties of monolayer phosphorene and is of significance to its application in high-performance devices.

Adsorption of cationic surfactants on silica surface: 1. Adsorption isotherms and surface charge

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Goloub, T.P.; Koopal, L.K.; Sidorova, M.P.

2004-01-01

Adsorption isotherms of cationic surfactant, dodecylpyridinium chloride, on an Aerosil OX50 and isotherms of surface charge against the background of 0.001- and 0.1-M KCl solutions at pH 7 and 9 were measured and analyzed. Different forms of adsorption isotherms of surfactants at low and high

One-Step Synthesis of PEGylated Gold Nanoparticles with Tunable Surface Charge

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rares Stiufiuc

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The present work reports a rapid, simple and efficient one-step synthesis and detailed characterisation of stable aqueous colloids of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs coated with unmodified poly(ethyleneglycol (PEG molecules of different molecular weights and surface charges. By mixing and heating aqueous solutions of PEG with variable molecular chain and gold(III chloride hydrate (HAuCl4 in the presence of NaOH, we have successfully produced uniform colloidal 5 nm PEG coated AuNPs of spherical shape with tunable surface charge and an average diameter of 30 nm within a few minutes. It has been found out that PEGylated AuNPs provide optical enhancement of the characteristic vibrational bands of PEG molecules attached to the gold surface when they are excited with both visible (532 nm and NIR (785 nm laser lines. The surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS signal does not depend on the length of the PEG molecular chain enveloping the AuNPs, and the stability of the colloid is not affected by the addition of concentrated salt solution (0.1 M NaCl, thus suggesting their potential use for in vitro and in vivo applications. Moreover, by gradually changing the chain length of the biopolymer, we were able to control nanoparticles’ surface charge from −28 to −2 mV, without any modification of the Raman enhancement properties and of the colloidal stability.

The Natural Charge On The Surface Of The Earth | Mamah | Global ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The natural electric charge or its artificial analogue as the fundamental unit of exploration has been fundamentally derived and compared for both the equatorial region and the polar region. The ratio of the unit charge on the surface of the earth at the equatorial region (ω ± ω0) = 0.59 rad where ω0 = 1.65; to that at the polar ...

High Reynolds number rough wall turbulent boundary layer experiments using Braille surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Michael; Monty, Jason; Nova, Todd; Allen, James; Chong, Min

2007-11-01

This paper details smooth, transitional and fully rough turbulent boundary layer experiments in the New Mexico State high Reynolds number rough wall wind tunnel. The initial surface tested was generated with a Braille printer and consisted of an uniform array of Braille points. The average point height being 0.5mm, the spacing between the points in the span was 0.5mm and the surface consisted of span wise rows separated by 4mm. The wavelength to peak ratio was 8:1. The boundary layer thickness at the measurement location was 190mm giving a large separation of roughness height to layer thickness. The maximum friction velocity was uτ=1.5m/s at Rex=3.8 x10^7. Results for the skin friction co-efficient show that this surface follows a Nikuradse type inflectional curve and that Townsends outer layer similarity hypothesis is valid for rough wall flows with a large separation of scales. Mean flow and turbulence statistics will be presented.

Construction of Hydrophobic Wood Surface and Mechanical Property of Wood Cell Wall on Nanoscale Modified by Dimethyldichlorosilane

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Rui; Wang, Siqun; Zhou, Dingguo; Zhang, Jie; Lan, Ping; Jia, Chong

2018-01-01

Dimethyldichlorosilane was used to improve the hydrophobicity of wood surface. The water contact angle of the treated wood surface increased from 85° to 143°, which indicated increased hydrophobicity. The nanomechanical properties of the wood cell wall were evaluated using a nanoindentation test to analyse the hydrophobic mechanism on the nano scale. The elastic modulus of the cell wall was significantly affected by the concentration but the influence of treatment time is insignificant. The hardness of the cell wall for treated samples was significantly affected by both treatment time and concentration. The interaction between treatment time and concentration was extremely significant for the elastic modulus of the wood cell wall.

Gas-surface dynamics and charging effects during plasma processing of semiconductors

Science.gov (United States)

Hwang, Gyeong Soon

This thesis work attempts to elucidate the fundamentals of gas-surface interactions that occur during plasma etching. Controlled experiments using hyperthermal fluorine beams have enabled us to uncover the scattering dynamics at complex surfaces similar to those encountered in etching. By analyzing energy and angular distributions of inelastically scattered F atoms, we were able to distinguish single- and multiple-bounce scattering and to develop models to describe these exit channels. Furthermore, we found that hard-sphere collision kinematics can capture well the energy transfer of the hyperthermal F atoms onto fluorinated silicon surfaces. Based on the fundamental scattering information, we have developed a kinetic model that is described by two parameters: (1) direct inelastic scattering probability and (2) sticking (reaction) probability. These parameters are formulated as a function of the incident energy and angle of F atoms. By incorporating the empirical kinetic model into Monte Carlo based profile evolution simulations, we have unraveled the origin of many etch profile peculiarities which appear during hyperthermal F-beam etching, such as microtrenching, inverse microloading, and undercutting. The kinetic model has been used to describe successfully etching in Cl2-plasmas. For the study of pattern-dependent charging, we have developed a numerical model that combines plasma, sheath, and charging dynamics. The charging simulations illustrate that the directionality difference between ions and electrons arriving at the wafer, brought about by the sheath, causes differential charging on patterned areas even when the plasma is uniform. Using the newly developed charging model, we have investigated gate oxide damage. The results show that a potential drop across the thin gate oxide caused by differential microstructure charging is primarily responsible for gate oxide degradation by driving Fowler-Nordheim stress currents. In general, increasing the flux of low

Investigation of surface charge density on solid–liquid interfaces by modulating the electrical double layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moon, Jong Kyun; Song, Myung Won; Pak, Hyuk Kyu

2015-01-01

A solid surface in contact with water or aqueous solution usually carries specific electric charges. These surface charges attract counter ions from the liquid side. Since the geometry of opposite charge distribution parallel to the solid–liquid interface is similar to that of a capacitor, it is called an electrical double layer capacitor (EDLC). Therefore, there is an electrical potential difference across an EDLC in equilibrium. When a liquid bridge is formed between two conducting plates, the system behaves as two serially connected EDLCs. In this work, we propose a new method for investigating the surface charge density on solid–liquid interfaces. By mechanically modulating the electrical double layers and simultaneously applying a dc bias voltage across the plates, an ac electric current can be generated. By measuring the voltage drop across a load resistor as a function of bias voltage, we can study the surface charge density on solid–liquid interfaces. Our experimental results agree very well with the simple equivalent electrical circuit model proposed here. Furthermore, using this method, one can determine the polarity of the adsorbed state on the solid surface depending on the material used. We expect this method to aid in the study of electrical phenomena on solid–liquid interfaces. (paper)

Effect of the surface charge discretization on electric double layers. A Monte Carlo simulation study

OpenAIRE

Madurga Díez, Sergio; Martín-Molina, Alberto; Vilaseca i Font, Eudald; Mas i Pujadas, Francesc; Quesada-Pérez, Manuel

2007-01-01

The structure of the electric double layer in contact with discrete and continuously charged planar surfaces is studied within the framework of the primitive model through Monte Carlo simulations. Three different discretization models are considered together with the case of uniform distribution. The effect of discreteness is analyzed in terms of charge density profiles. For point surface groups,a complete equivalence with the situation of uniformly distributed charge is found if profiles are...

Internal Charging

Science.gov (United States)

Minow, Joseph I.

2014-01-01

(1) High energy (>100keV) electrons penetrate spacecraft walls and accumulate in dielectrics or isolated conductors; (2) Threat environment is energetic electrons with sufficient flux to charge circuit boards, cable insulation, and ungrounded metal faster than charge can dissipate; (3) Accumulating charge density generates electric fields in excess of material breakdown strenght resulting in electrostatic discharge; and (4) System impact is material damage, discharge currents inside of spacecraft Faraday cage on or near critical circuitry, and RF noise.

Surface characterization and surface electronic structure of organic quasi-one-dimensional charge transfer salts

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sing, M.; Schwingenschlögl, U.; Claessen, R.

2003-01-01

We have thoroughly characterized the surfaces of the organic charge-transfer salts TTF-TCNQ and (TMTSF)(2)PF6 which are generally acknowledged as prototypical examples of one-dimensional conductors. In particular x-ray-induced photoemission spectroscopy turns out to be a valuable nondestructive...

Simultaneous and long-lasting hydrophilization of inner and outer wall surfaces of polytetrafluoroethylene tubes by transferring atmospheric pressure plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Faze; Song, Jinlong; Huang, Shuai; Xu, Wenji; Sun, Jing; Liu, Xin; Xu, Sihao; Xia, Guangqing; Yang, Dezheng

2016-01-01

Plasma hydrophilization is a general method to increase the surface free energy of materials. However, only a few works about plasma modification focus on the hydrophilization of tube inner and outer walls. In this paper, we realize simultaneous and long-lasting plasma hydrophilization on the inner and outer walls of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) tubes by atmospheric pressure plasmas (APPs). Specifically, an Ar atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ) is used to modify the PTFE tube’s outer wall and meanwhile to induce transferred He APP inside the PTFE tube to modify its inner wall surface. The optical emission spectrum (OES) shows that the plasmas contain many chemically active species, which are known as enablers for various applications. Water contact angle (WCA) measurements, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) are used to characterize the plasma hydrophilization. Results demonstrate that the wettability of the tube walls are well improved due to the replacement of the surface fluorine by oxygen and the change of surface roughness. The obtained hydrophilicity decreases slowly during more than 180 d aging, indicating a long-lasting hydrophilization. The results presented here clearly demonstrate the great potential of transferring APPs for surface modification of the tube’s inner and outer walls simultaneously. (paper)

Influence of solvent polarization and non-uniform ion size on electrostatic properties between charged surfaces in an electrolyte solution

Science.gov (United States)

Sin, Jun-Sik

2017-12-01

In this paper, we study electrostatic properties between two similar or oppositely charged surfaces immersed in an electrolyte solution by using the mean-field approach accounting for solvent polarization and non-uniform size effects. Applying a free energy formalism accounting for unequal ion sizes and orientational ordering of water dipoles, we derive coupled and self-consistent equations to calculate electrostatic properties between charged surfaces. Electrostatic properties for similarly charged surfaces depend on the counterion size but not on the coion size. Moreover, electrostatic potential and osmotic pressure between similarly charged surfaces are found to be increased with increasing counterion size. On the other hand, the corresponding ones between oppositely charged surfaces are related to both sizes of positive and negative ions. For oppositely charged surfaces, the electrostatic potential, number density of solvent molecules, and relative permittivity of an electrolyte having unequal ion sizes are not symmetric about the centerline between the charged surfaces. For either case, the consideration of solvent polarization results in a decrease in the electrostatic potential and the osmotic pressure compared to the case without the effect.

Optimization of Surface Roughness and Wall Thickness in Dieless Incremental Forming Of Aluminum Sheet Using Taguchi

Science.gov (United States)

Hamedon, Zamzuri; Kuang, Shea Cheng; Jaafar, Hasnulhadi; Azhari, Azmir

2018-03-01

Incremental sheet forming is a versatile sheet metal forming process where a sheet metal is formed into its final shape by a series of localized deformation without a specialised die. However, it still has many shortcomings that need to be overcome such as geometric accuracy, surface roughness, formability, forming speed, and so on. This project focus on minimising the surface roughness of aluminium sheet and improving its thickness uniformity in incremental sheet forming via optimisation of wall angle, feed rate, and step size. Besides, the effect of wall angle, feed rate, and step size to the surface roughness and thickness uniformity of aluminium sheet was investigated in this project. From the results, it was observed that surface roughness and thickness uniformity were inversely varied due to the formation of surface waviness. Increase in feed rate and decrease in step size will produce a lower surface roughness, while uniform thickness reduction was obtained by reducing the wall angle and step size. By using Taguchi analysis, the optimum parameters for minimum surface roughness and uniform thickness reduction of aluminium sheet were determined. The finding of this project helps to reduce the time in optimising the surface roughness and thickness uniformity in incremental sheet forming.

Decontamination efficiency of a sheet of vinyl wall paper as a surface material in radioisotope laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Furukawa, Kazuhiko; Funadera, Kanako

1989-01-01

It has long been desired to prevent surface materials from cracking in a radioisotope laboratory. We applied a sheet of nonflammable wall paper, vinyl cloth, as a surface material to cover concrete wall. It was sufficiently resistant to the reinforced concrete wall cracking. The efficiency of the decontamination of the vinyl cloth was compared with those of stainless steel, iron and painted plates. The contamination and decontamination indices were determined in these surface materials after contamination with [ 32 P]orthophosphate (pH 3, 7 and 11) for 0 to 48 h. Both of the indices of the vinyl cloth were higher than those of the other materials. Further, it was confirmed that the vinyl cloth was resistant to acid and alkaline conditions and radioisotopes could not be permeable. The wipe off efficiency was also investigated in these materials by use of several decontamination detergents. In any reagents tested, the wipe of efficiency of the vinyl cloth was more than 80%. Thus, the vinyl cloth could be used for the surface material and is one of good surface materials in a radioisotope laboratory. (author)

Charge Dynamics in near-Surface, Variable-Density Ensembles of Nitrogen-Vacancy Centers in Diamond.

Science.gov (United States)

Dhomkar, Siddharth; Jayakumar, Harishankar; Zangara, Pablo R; Meriles, Carlos A

2018-06-13

Although the spin properties of superficial shallow nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers have been the subject of extensive scrutiny, considerably less attention has been devoted to studying the dynamics of NV charge conversion near the diamond surface. Using multicolor confocal microscopy, here we show that near-surface point defects arising from high-density ion implantation dramatically increase the ionization and recombination rates of shallow NVs compared to those in bulk diamond. Further, we find that these rates grow linearly, not quadratically, with laser intensity, indicative of single-photon processes enabled by NV state mixing with other defect states. Accompanying these findings, we observe NV ionization and recombination in the dark, likely the result of charge transfer to neighboring traps. Despite the altered charge dynamics, we show that one can imprint rewritable, long-lasting patterns of charged-initialized, near-surface NVs over large areas, an ability that could be exploited for electrochemical biosensing or to optically store digital data sets with subdiffraction resolution.

Estimation of Nanodiamond Surface Charge Density from Zeta Potential and Molecular Dynamics Simulations.

Science.gov (United States)

Ge, Zhenpeng; Wang, Yi

2017-04-20

Molecular dynamics simulations of nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly used to study their interactions with various biological macromolecules. Such simulations generally require detailed knowledge of the surface composition of the NP under investigation. Even for some well-characterized nanoparticles, however, this knowledge is not always available. An example is nanodiamond, a nanoscale diamond particle with surface dominated by oxygen-containing functional groups. In this work, we explore using the harmonic restraint method developed by Venable et al., to estimate the surface charge density (σ) of nanodiamonds. Based on the Gouy-Chapman theory, we convert the experimentally determined zeta potential of a nanodiamond to an effective charge density (σ eff ), and then use the latter to estimate σ via molecular dynamics simulations. Through scanning a series of nanodiamond models, we show that the above method provides a straightforward protocol to determine the surface charge density of relatively large (> ∼100 nm) NPs. Overall, our results suggest that despite certain limitation, the above protocol can be readily employed to guide the model construction for MD simulations, which is particularly useful when only limited experimental information on the NP surface composition is available to a modeler.

Evaluation of Coating Removal and Aggressive Surface Removal Surface Technologies Applied to Concrete Walls, Brick Walls, and Concrete Ceilings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ebadian, M.A.; Lagos, L.E.

1997-01-01

The purpose of this investigation was to test and evaluate innovative and commercially available technologies for the surface decontamination of walls and ceilings. This investigation supports the DOE's objectives of reducing risks to human health and the environment through its restoration projects at FEMP and MEMP. This project was performed at the Hemispheric Center for Environmental Technology (HCET) at Florida International University (FIU), where one innovative and four commercially available decontamination technologies were evaluated under standard, non-nuclear testing conditions. The performance data generated by this project will assist DOE site managers in the selection of the safest, most efficient, and most cost-effective decontamination technologies to accomplish their remediation objectives

The stochastic nature of the domain wall motion along high perpendicular anisotropy strips with surface roughness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martinez, Eduardo

2012-01-01

The domain wall dynamics along thin ferromagnetic strips with high perpendicular magnetocrystalline anisotropy driven by either magnetic fields or spin-polarized currents is theoretically analyzed by means of full micromagnetic simulations and a one-dimensional model, including both surface roughness and thermal effects. At finite temperature, the results show a field dependence of the domain wall velocity in good qualitative agreement with available experimental measurements, indicating a low field, low velocity creep regime, and a high field, linear regime separated by a smeared depinning region. Similar behaviors were also observed under applied currents. In the low current creep regime the velocity-current characteristic does not depend significantly on the non-adiabaticity. At high currents, where the domain wall velocity becomes insensitive to surface pinning, the domain wall shows a precessional behavior even when the non-adiabatic parameter is equal to the Gilbert damping. These analyses confirm the relevance of both thermal fluctuations and surface roughness for the domain wall dynamics, and that complete micromagnetic modeling and one-dimensional studies taking into account these effects are required to interpret the experimental measurements in order to get a better understanding of the origin, the role and the magnitude of the non-adiabaticity. (paper)

D-branes and coherent topological charge structure in QCD

Science.gov (United States)

Thacker, Hank

2006-12-01

Monte Carlo studies of pure glue SU(3) gauge theory using the overlap-based topological charge operator have revealed a laminar structure in the QCD vacuum consisting of extended, thin, co- herent, locally 3-dimensional sheets of topological charge embedded in 4D space, with opposite sign sheets interleaved. Studies of localization properties of Dirac eigenmodes have also shown evidence for the delocalization of low-lying modes on effectively 3-dimensional surfaces. In this talk, I review some theoretical ideas which suggest the possibility of 3-dimensionally coherent topological charge structure in 4-dimensional gauge theory and provide a possible interpretation of the observed structure. I begin with Luscher's "Wilson bag" integral over the 3-index Chern- Simons tensor. The analogy with a Wilson loop as a charged world line in 2-dimensional CP N-1 sigma models suggests that the Wilson bag surface represents the world volume of a physical membrane. The large-N chiral Lagrangian arguments of Witten also indicate the existence of multiple "k-vacuum" states with discontinuous transitions between k-vacua at θ = odd multi- ples of π. The domain walls between these vacua have the properties of a Wilson bag surface. Finally, I review the AdS/CFT duality view of θ dependence in QCD. The dual realtionship be- tween topological charge in gauge theory and Ramond-Ramond charge in type IIA string theory suggests that the coherent topological charge sheets observed on the lattice are the holographic image of wrapped D6 branes.

Charge effects on hindrance factors for diffusion and convection of solute in pores I

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O-tani, Hideyuki [Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Kansai University, Yamate-cho, Suita, Osaka 564-8680 (Japan); Akinaga, Takeshi; Sugihara-Seki, Masako, E-mail: ga8d002@kansai-u.ac.jp [Department of Pure and Applied Physics, Kansai University, Yamate-cho, Suita, Osaka 564-8680 (Japan)

2011-12-01

The transport of a spherical solute through a long circular cylindrical pore filled with an electrolyte solution is studied numerically, in the presence of constant surface charge on the solute and the pore wall. Fluid dynamic analyses were carried out to calculate the flow field around the solute in the pore to evaluate the drag coefficients exerted on the solute. Electrical potentials around the solute in the electrolyte solution were computed based on a mean-field theory to provide the interaction energy between the charged solute and the pore wall. Combining the results of the fluid dynamic and electrostatic analyses, we estimated the rate of the diffusive and convective transport of the solute across the pore. Although the present estimates of the drag coefficients on the solute suggest more than 10% difference from existing studies, depending on the radius ratio of the solute relative to the pore and the radial position of the solute center in the pore, this difference leads to a minor effect on the hindrance factors. It was found that even at rather large ion concentrations, the repulsive electrostatic interaction between the charged solute and the pore wall of like charge could significantly reduce the transport rate of the solute.

Charge-spin Transport in Surface-disordered Three-dimensional Topological Insulators

Science.gov (United States)

Peng, Xingyue

As one of the most promising candidates for the building block of the novel spintronic circuit, the topological insulator (TI) has attracted world-wide interest of study. Robust topological order protected by time-reversal symmetry (TRS) makes charge transport and spin generation in TIs significantly different from traditional three-dimensional (3D) or two-dimensional (2D) electronic systems. However, to date, charge transport and spin generation in 3D TIs are still primarily modeled as single-surface phenomena, happening independently on top and bottom surfaces. In this dissertation, I will demonstrate via both experimental findings and theoretical modeling that this "single surface'' theory neither correctly describes a realistic 3D TI-based device nor reveals the amazingly distinct physical picture of spin transport dynamics in 3D TIs. Instead, I present a new viewpoint of the spin transport dynamics where the role of the insulating yet topologically non-trivial bulk of a 3D TI becomes explicit. Within this new theory, many mysterious transport and magneto-transport anomalies can be naturally explained. The 3D TI system turns out to be more similar to its low dimensional sibling--2D TI rather than some other systems sharing the Dirac dispersion, such as graphene. This work not only provides valuable fundamental physical insights on charge-spin transport in 3D TIs, but also offers important guidance to the design of 3D TI-based spintronic devices.

Effects of Discrete Charge Clustering in Simulations of Charged Interfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Grime, John M A; Khan, Malek O

2010-10-12

A system of counterions between charged surfaces is investigated, with the surfaces represented by uniform charged planes and three different arrangements of discrete surface charges - an equispaced grid and two different clustered arrangements. The behaviors of a series of systems with identical net surface charge density are examined, with particular emphasis placed on the long ranged corrections via the method of "charged slabs" and the effects of the simulation cell size. Marked differences are observed in counterion distributions and the osmotic pressure dependent on the particular representation of the charged surfaces; the uniformly charged surfaces and equispaced grids of discrete charge behave in a broadly similar manner, but the clustered systems display a pronounced decrease in osmotic pressure as the simulation size is increased. The influence of the long ranged correction is shown to be minimal for all but the very smallest of system sizes.

Spalling of concrete walls under blast load

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kot, C.A.

1977-01-01

A common effect of the detonation of explosives in close proximity of concrete shield walls is the spalling (scabbing) of the back face of the wall. Spalling is caused by the free surface reflection of the shock wave induced in the wall by high pressure air blast and occurs whenever the dynamic tensile rupture strength is exceeded. While a complex process, reasonable analytical spall estimates can be obtained for brittle materials with low tensile strengths, such as concrete, by assuming elastic material behavior and instantaneous spall formation. Specifically, the spall thicknesses and velocities for both normal and oblique incidence of the shock wave on the back face of the wall are calculated. The complex exponential decay wave forms of the air blast are locally approximated by simple power law expressions. Variations of blast wave strength with distance to the wall, charge weight and angle of incidence are taken into consideration. The shock wave decay in the wall is also accounted for by assuming elastic wave propagation. For explosions close-in to the wall, where the reflected blast wave pressures are sufficiently high, multiple spall layers are formed. Successive spall layers are of increasing thickness, at the same time the spall velocities decrease. The spall predictions based on elastic theory are in overall agreement with experimntal results and provide a rapid means of estimating spalling trends of concrete walls subjected to air blast. (Auth.)

Fluctuation and dipolar interaction effects on the pinning of domain walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chui, S.T.

2001-01-01

We discuss the effect of the dipolar interaction on the pinning of domain walls. Domain walls are usually pinned near the boundaries between grains. Magnetic charges accumulated at the domain wall make the wall more unstable and easier to depin. We discuss how the grain-orientation and thermal fluctuations affect these magnetic charges and hence the depinning of the domain walls. Our results are illustrated by finite temperature Monte Carlo simulation on periodic arrays of large cells separated by walls consisting of faces of pyramids

High-resolution 13C nuclear magnetic resonance evidence of phase transition of Rb,Cs-intercalated single-walled nanotubes

KAUST Repository

Bouhrara, M.; Saih, Y.; Wågberg, T.; Goze-Bac, C.; Abou-Hamad, E.

2011-01-01

charge transfer is applicable at low intercalation level. The new phase at high intercalation level is accompanied by a hybridization of alkali (s) orbitals with the carbon (sp2) orbitals of the single walled nanotubes, which indicate bundle surface sites

Domain walls and fermion scattering in grand unified models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steer, D.A.; Vachaspati, T.

2006-01-01

Motivated by grand unification, we study the properties of domain walls formed in a model with SU(5)xZ 2 symmetry which is spontaneously broken to SU(3)xSU(2)xU(1)/Z 6 , and subsequently to SU(3)xU(1)/Z 3 . Even after the first stage of symmetry breaking, the SU(3) symmetry is broken to SU(2)xU(1)/Z 2 on the domain wall. In a certain range of parameters, flux tubes carrying color- and hyper-charge live on the domain wall and appear as 'boojums' when viewed from one side of the domain wall. Magnetic monopoles are also formed in the symmetry breaking and those carrying color and hyper-charge can be repelled from the wall due to the Meissner effect, or else their magnetic flux can penetrate the domain wall in quantized units. After the second stage of symmetry breaking, fermions can transmute when they scatter with the domain wall, providing a simpler version of fermion-monopole scattering: for example, neutrinos can scatter into d-quarks, leaving behind electric charge and color which is carried by gauge field excitations living on the domain wall

Renormalization in charged colloids: non-monotonic behaviour with the surface charge

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haro-Perez, C; Quesada-Perez, M; Callejas-Fernandez, J; Schurtenberger, P; Hidalgo-Alvarez, R

2006-01-01

The static structure factor S(q) is measured for a set of deionized latex dispersions with different numbers of ionizable surface groups per particle and similar diameters. For a given volume fraction, the height of the main peak of S(q), which is a direct measure of the spatial ordering of latex particles, does not increase monotonically with the number of ionizable groups. This behaviour cannot be described using the classical renormalization scheme based on the cell model. We analyse our experimental data using a renormalization model based on the jellium approximation, which predicts the weakening of the spatial order for moderate and large particle charges. (letter to the editor)

Single ion induced surface nanostructures: a comparison between slow highly charged and swift heavy ions.

Science.gov (United States)

Aumayr, Friedrich; Facsko, Stefan; El-Said, Ayman S; Trautmann, Christina; Schleberger, Marika

2011-10-05

This topical review focuses on recent advances in the understanding of the formation of surface nanostructures, an intriguing phenomenon in ion-surface interaction due to the impact of individual ions. In many solid targets, swift heavy ions produce narrow cylindrical tracks accompanied by the formation of a surface nanostructure. More recently, a similar nanometric surface effect has been revealed for the impact of individual, very slow but highly charged ions. While swift ions transfer their large kinetic energy to the target via ionization and electronic excitation processes (electronic stopping), slow highly charged ions produce surface structures due to potential energy deposited at the top surface layers. Despite the differences in primary excitation, the similarity between the nanostructures is striking and strongly points to a common mechanism related to the energy transfer from the electronic to the lattice system of the target. A comparison of surface structures induced by swift heavy ions and slow highly charged ions provides a valuable insight to better understand the formation mechanisms. © 2011 IOP Publishing Ltd

Chiral charge flux and electroweak baryogenesis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Funakubo, Koichi [Saga Univ. (Japan). Dept. of Physics; Kakuto, Akira; Otsuki, Shoichiro; Takenaga, Kazunori; Toyoda, Fumihiko

1995-06-01

By treating CP-violating interaction of the electroweak bubble wall as a perturbative term, chiral charge flux through the bubble wall is estimated. It is found that the absolute value of the flux F{sub Q} has a sharp peak at m{sub 0} - a - T with F{sub Q}/(uT{sup 3}) - 10{sup -3}(Q{sub L}-Q{sub R}){Delta}{theta}. Here m{sub 0} is the fermion mass, 1/a is the wall thickness, T is the temperature at which the bubbles are growing, u is the wall velocity, Q{sub L(R)} is the chiral charge of the relevant left (right)-handed fermion and {Delta}{theta} is the measure of CP violation. (author).

Nano-sized surface modifications induced by the impact of slow highly charged ions - A first review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aumayr, F.; El-Said, A.S.; Meissl, W.

2008-01-01

Irradiation of crystalline solid targets with swift heavy ions can lead to the formation of latent tracks in the solid and the creation of (mostly-hillock type) nanostructures on the surface. Recently similar surface modifications with nanometer dimensions have been demonstrated for the impact of individual, very slow but highly charged ions on various surfaces. We will review the current state of this new field of research. In particular we will discuss the circumstances and conditions under which nano-sized features (hillocks or craters) on different surfaces due to impact of slow highly charged ions can be produced. The use of slow highly charged ions instead of swift heavy ions might be of considerable interest for some practical applications

Evaluation of Coating Removal and Aggressive Surface Removal Surface Technologies Applied to Concrete Walls, Brick Walls, and Concrete Ceilings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lagos, L.E.; Ebadian, M.A.

1997-11-01

The purpose of this investigation was to test and evaluate innovative and commercially available technologies for the surface decontamination of walls and ceilings. This investigation supports the DOE's objectives of reducing risks to human health and the environment through its restoration projects at FEMP and MEMP. This project was performed at the Hemispheric Center for Environmental Technology (HCET) at Florida International University (FIU), where one innovative and four commercially available decontamination technologies were evaluated under standard, non-nuclear testing conditions. The performance data generated by this project will assist DOE site managers in the selection of the safest, most efficient, and most cost-effective decontamination technologies to accomplish their remediation objectives.

Effect of subcooling and wall thickness on pool boiling from downward-facing curved surfaces in water

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

El-Genk, M.S.; Glebov, A.G. [Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States)

1995-09-01

Quenching experiments were performed to investigate the effects of water subcooling and wall thickness on pool boiling from a downward-facing curved surface. Experiments used three copper sections of the same diameter (50.8 mm) and surface radius (148 mm), but different thickness (12.8, 20 and 30 mm). Local and average pool boiling curves were obtained at saturation and 5 K, 10 K, and 14 K subcooling. Water subcooling increased the maximum heat flux, but decreased the corresponding wall superheat. The minimum film boiling heat flux and the corresponding wall superheat, however, increased with increased subcooling. The maximum and minimum film boiling heat fluxes were independent of wall thickness above 20 mm and Biot Number > 0.8, indicating that boiling curves for the 20 and 30 thick sections were representative of quasi steady-state, but not those for the 12.8 mm thick section. When compared with that for a flat surface section of the same thickness, the data for the 12.8 mm thick section showed significant increases in both the maximum heat flux (from 0.21 to 0.41 MW/m{sup 2}) and the minimum film boiling heat flux (from 2 to 13 kW/m{sup 2}) and about 11.5 K and 60 K increase in the corresponding wall superheats, respectively.

Long-Lived Charge Separation at Heterojunctions between Semiconducting Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Perylene Diimide Electron Acceptors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kang, Hyun Suk [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Arias, Dylan H [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Blackburn, Jeffrey L [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Sisto, Thomas J. [Columbia University; Peurifoy, Samuel [Columbia University; Zhang, Boyuan [Columbia University; Nuckolls, Colin [Columbia University

2018-04-13

Nonfullerene electron acceptors have facilitated a recent surge in the efficiencies of organic solar cells, although fundamental studies of the nature of exciton dissociation at interfaces with nonfullerene electron acceptors are still relatively sparse. Semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (s-SWCNTs), unique one-dimensional electron donors with molecule-like absorption and highly mobile charges, provide a model system for studying interfacial exciton dissociation. Here, we investigate excited-state photodynamics at the heterojunction between (6,5) s-SWCNTs and two perylene diimide (PDI)-based electron acceptors. Each of the PDI-based acceptors, hPDI2-pyr-hPDI2 and Trip-hPDI2, is deposited onto (6,5) s-SWCNT films to form a heterojunction bilayer. Transient absorption measurements demonstrate that photoinduced hole/electron transfer occurs at the photoexcited bilayer interfaces, producing long-lived separated charges with lifetimes exceeding 1.0 us. Both exciton dissociation and charge recombination occur more slowly for the hPDI2-pyr-hPDI2 bilayer than for the Trip-hPDI2 bilayer. To explain such differences, we discuss the potential roles of the thermodynamic charge transfer driving force available at each interface and the different molecular structure and intermolecular interactions of PDI-based acceptors. Detailed photophysical analysis of these model systems can develop the fundamental understanding of exciton dissociation between organic electron donors and nonfullerene acceptors, which has not been systematically studied.

Charge and current transport in open field lines turbulence: Influence of plasma-surface boundary conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Futtersack, R., E-mail: romain.futtersack@cea.fr [CEA, IRFM, F-13108 Saint-Paul-lez-Durance (France); Universite Paul Sabatier Toulouse, LAPLACE, 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9 (France); Tamain, P. [CEA, IRFM, F-13108 Saint-Paul-lez-Durance (France); Hagelaar, G. [Universite Paul Sabatier Toulouse, LAPLACE, 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9 (France); Ghendrih, Ph.; Simonin, A. [CEA, IRFM, F-13108 Saint-Paul-lez-Durance (France)

2013-07-15

We investigate the impact of both parallel and transverse boundary conditions on the current and charge transport in open field line systems using the TOKAM2D code, which solves a minimal model for interchange turbulence. Various limit test cases are discussed and analyzed. In the parallel direction, the sheath conductivity is found to play an essential role in the stabilization of large-scale potential structures, leading to the formation of transport channel or transport barrier respectively for an insulating end wall or a wall with an enhanced sheath conductivity. On another hand, the addition of transverse boundary conditions intrinsically changes the transport characteristics, influencing both radial profiles and probability density functions. It underlines that in some cases a detailed description of the plasma-wall interaction process is required to get a proper description of the current loop pattern that determines electrostatic turbulent transport.

Surface segregation in binary alloy first wall candidate materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gruen, D.M.; Krauss, A.R.; Mendelsohn, M.H.; Susman, S.; Argonne National Lab., IL

1982-01-01

We have been studying the conditions necessary to produce a self-sustaining stable lithium monolayer on a metal substrate as a means of creating a low-Z film which sputters primarily as secondary ions. It is expected that because of the toroidal field, secondary ions originating at the first wall will be returned and contribute little to the plasma impurity influx. Aluminum and copper have, because of their high thermal conductivity and low induced radioactivity, been proposed as first wall candidate materials. The mechanical properties of the pure metals are very poorly suited to structural applications and an alloy must be used to obtain adequate hardness and tensile strength. In the case of aluminum, mechanical properties suitable for aircraft manufacture are obtained by the addition of a few at% Li. In order to investigate alloys of a similar nature as candidate structural materials for fusion machines we have prepared samples of Li-doped aluminum using both a pyro-metallurgical and a vapor-diffusion technique. The sputtering properties and surface composition have been studied as a function of sample temperature and heating time, and ion beam mass. The erosion rate and secondary ion yield of both the sputtered Al and Li have been monitored by secondary ion mass spectroscopy and Auger analysis providing information on surface segregation, depth composition profiles, and diffusion rates. The surface composition ahd lithium depth profiles are compared with previously obtained computational results based on a regular solution model of segregation, while the partial sputtering yields of Al and Li are compared with results obtained with a modified version of the TRIM computer program. (orig.)

Effects of external surface charges on the enhanced piezoelectric potential of ZnO and AlN nanowires and nanotubes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seong Min Kim

2012-12-01

Full Text Available We theoretically investigate external surface charge effects on piezoelectric potential of ZnO and AlN nanowires (NWs and nanotubes (NTs under uniform compression. The free carrier depletion caused by negative surface charges via surface functionalization on vertically compressed ZnO and AlN NWs/NTs is simulated using finite element calculation; this indicates the enhancement of piezoelectric potential is due to the free carriers (electrons being fully depleted at the critical surface charge density. Numerical simulations reveal that full coverage of surface charges surrounding the NTs increases the piezoelectric output potential exponentially within a relatively smaller range of charge density compared to the case of NWs for a typical donor concentration (∼1017 cm−3. The model can be used to design functional high-power semiconducting piezoelectric nanogenerators.

An algorithm for three-dimensional Monte-Carlo simulation of charge distribution at biofunctionalized surfaces

KAUST Repository

Bulyha, Alena; Heitzinger, Clemens

2011-01-01

In this work, a Monte-Carlo algorithm in the constant-voltage ensemble for the calculation of 3d charge concentrations at charged surfaces functionalized with biomolecules is presented. The motivation for this work is the theoretical understanding

Controlling charges distribution at the surface of a single GaN nanowire by in-situ strain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiao Chen

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Effect of the strain on the charge distribution at the surface of a GaN semiconductor nanowire (NW has been investigated inside transmission electron microscope (TEM by in-situ off-axis electron holography. The outer and inner surfaces of the NW bent axially under compression of two Au electrodes were differently strained, resulting in difference of their Fermi levels. Consequently, the free electrons flow from the high Fermi level to the low level until the two Fermi levels aligned in a line. The potential distributions induced by charge redistribution in the two vacuum sides of the bent NW were examined respectively, and the opposite nature of the bounded charges on the outer and inner surfaces of the bent NW was identified. The results provide experimental evidence that the charge distribution at the surfaces of a single GaN NW can be controlled by different strains created along the NW.

Spacecraft Surface Charging Handbook

Science.gov (United States)

1992-11-01

Charging of Large Spwc Structure• . in Polut Otbil.’" Prweedings of thre Air For’e Grespykirs fitrano, W4r4 nop em Natural Charging of large Space Stru, ures...3, p. 1433- 1440, 1991. Bowman, C., Bogorad, A., Brucker, G., Seehra, S., and Lloyd, T., "ITO-Coated RF Transparent Materials for Antenna Sunscreen

A waveless two-dimensional flow in a channel against an inclined wall with surface tension effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Merzougui, Abdelkrim; Mekias, Hocine; Guechi, Fairouz

2007-01-01

Surface tension effect on a two-dimensional channel flow against an inclined wall is considered. The flow is assumed to be steady, irrotational, inviscid and incompressible. The effect of surface tension is taken into account and the effect of gravity is neglected. Numerical solutions are obtained via series truncation procedure. The problem is solved numerically for various values of the Weber number α and for various values of the inclination angle β between the horizontal bottom and the inclined wall

A waveless two-dimensional flow in a channel against an inclined wall with surface tension effect

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Merzougui, Abdelkrim [Departement de Mathematiques, Faculte des sciences, Universite Mohamed Boudiaf, M' sila, 28000 (Algeria); Mekias, Hocine [Departement de Mathematiques, Faculte des sciences, Universite Farhat Abbas Setif 19000 (Algeria); Guechi, Fairouz [Departement de Mathematiques, Faculte des sciences, Universite Farhat Abbas Setif 19000 (Algeria)

2007-11-23

Surface tension effect on a two-dimensional channel flow against an inclined wall is considered. The flow is assumed to be steady, irrotational, inviscid and incompressible. The effect of surface tension is taken into account and the effect of gravity is neglected. Numerical solutions are obtained via series truncation procedure. The problem is solved numerically for various values of the Weber number {alpha} and for various values of the inclination angle {beta} between the horizontal bottom and the inclined wall.

Self-Consistent Approach to Global Charge Neutrality in Electrokinetics: A Surface Potential Trap Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li Wan

2014-03-01

Full Text Available In this work, we treat the Poisson-Nernst-Planck (PNP equations as the basis for a consistent framework of the electrokinetic effects. The static limit of the PNP equations is shown to be the charge-conserving Poisson-Boltzmann (CCPB equation, with guaranteed charge neutrality within the computational domain. We propose a surface potential trap model that attributes an energy cost to the interfacial charge dissociation. In conjunction with the CCPB, the surface potential trap can cause a surface-specific adsorbed charge layer σ. By defining a chemical potential μ that arises from the charge neutrality constraint, a reformulated CCPB can be reduced to the form of the Poisson-Boltzmann equation, whose prediction of the Debye screening layer profile is in excellent agreement with that of the Poisson-Boltzmann equation when the channel width is much larger than the Debye length. However, important differences emerge when the channel width is small, so the Debye screening layers from the opposite sides of the channel overlap with each other. In particular, the theory automatically yields a variation of σ that is generally known as the “charge regulation” behavior, attendant with predictions of force variation as a function of nanoscale separation between two charged surfaces that are in good agreement with the experiments, with no adjustable or additional parameters. We give a generalized definition of the ζ potential that reflects the strength of the electrokinetic effect; its variations with the concentration of surface-specific and surface-nonspecific salt ions are shown to be in good agreement with the experiments. To delineate the behavior of the electro-osmotic (EO effect, the coupled PNP and Navier-Stokes equations are solved numerically under an applied electric field tangential to the fluid-solid interface. The EO effect is shown to exhibit an intrinsic time dependence that is noninertial in its origin. Under a step-function applied

Cryogenic germanium detectors for dark matter search: Surface events rejection by charge measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Broniatowski, A.; Censier, B.; Juillard, A.; Berge, L.

2006-01-01

Test experiments have been performed on a Ge detector of the Edelweiss collaboration, combining time-resolved acquisition of the ionization signals with heat measurements. Pulse-shape analysis of the charge signals demonstrates the capability to reject surface events of poor charge collection with energies larger than 50 keV in ionization

Computational Fluid Dynamics Modeling of Steam Condensation on Nuclear Containment Wall Surfaces Based on Semiempirical Generalized Correlations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pavan K. Sharma

2012-01-01

Full Text Available In water-cooled nuclear power reactors, significant quantities of steam and hydrogen could be produced within the primary containment following the postulated design basis accidents (DBA or beyond design basis accidents (BDBA. For accurate calculation of the temperature/pressure rise and hydrogen transport calculation in nuclear reactor containment due to such scenarios, wall condensation heat transfer coefficient (HTC is used. In the present work, the adaptation of a commercial CFD code with the implementation of models for steam condensation on wall surfaces in presence of noncondensable gases is explained. Steam condensation has been modeled using the empirical average HTC, which was originally developed to be used for “lumped-parameter” (volume-averaged modeling of steam condensation in the presence of noncondensable gases. The present paper suggests a generalized HTC based on curve fitting of most of the reported semiempirical condensation models, which are valid for specific wall conditions. The present methodology has been validated against limited reported experimental data from the COPAIN experimental facility. This is the first step towards the CFD-based generalized analysis procedure for condensation modeling applicable for containment wall surfaces that is being evolved further for specific wall surfaces within the multicompartment containment atmosphere.

STUDY OF STATIC ELECTRICITY CHARGE ACCUMULATION ON SURFACE OF FLUOROPOLYMER-4 PRODUCTS USING VIBRATING CAPACITOR METHOD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. А. Vershina

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The paper presents investigations of processes pertaining to surface charge accumulation and running of fluoropolymer-4 products using vibrating capacitor method. Modification of a measurement technique allowing to register distribution of dielectric surface potential without disturbance of the surface charged state has been described in the paper. The paper contains graphics of spatial distribution of surface potential of fluoropolymer-4 products after various treatments. The paper reveals that thermal treatment (tempering reduces static characteristics of fluoropolymer-4.

Preparing hydroxyapatite-silicon composite suspensions with homogeneous distribution of multi-walled carbon nano-tubes for electrophoretic coating of NiTi bone implant and their effect on the surface morphology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khalili, Vida; Khalil-Allafi, Jafar; Xia, Wei; Parsa, Alireza B.; Frenzel, Jan; Somsen, Christoph; Eggeler, Gunther

2016-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • The stable composite suspensions of hydroxyapatite, silicon and multi-walled carbon nano-tubes was prepared using functionalization of and multi-walled carbon nano-tubes in HNO_3 vapor and triethanolamine as dispersing agent. • The zeta potential of composite suspensions is less than that of hydroxyapatite suspension. • The silicon particles presence in suspension causes to decrease the charge carrier in suspension and current density during electrophoretic deposition. • The orientation of multi-walled carbon nano-tubes to parallel direction of the applied electric field during electrophoretic deposition can facilitate their moving towards the cathode and increase current density. • The more zeta potential of suspension, the lower roughness of coatings during electrophoretic deposition. - Abstract: Preparing a stable suspension is a main step towards the electrophoretically depositing of homogeneous and dense composite coatings on NiTi for its biomedical application. In the present study, different composite suspensions of hydroxyapatite, silicon and multi-walled carbon nano-tubes were prepared using n-butanol and triethanolamine as media and dispersing agent, respectively. Multi-walled carbon nanotubes were first functionalized in the nitric acid vapor for 15 h at 175 °C, and then mixed into suspensions. Thermal desorption spectroscopy profiles indicate the formation of functional groups on multi-walled carbon nano-tubes. An excellent suspension stability can be achieved for different amounts of triethanolamine. The amount of triethanolamine can be increased by adding a second component to a stable hydroxyapatite suspension due to an electrostatic interaction between components in suspension. The stability of composite suspension is less than that of the hydroxyapatite suspension, due to density differences, which under the gravitational force promote the demixing. The scanning electron microscopy images of the

Local charge exchange of He{sup +} ions at Aluminum surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Riccardi, P., E-mail: pierfrancesco.riccardi@fis.unical.it [Dipartimento di Fisica, Università della Calabria and INFN – Gruppo collegato di Cosenza, Via P. Bucci cubo 33C, Arcavacata di Rende, Cosenza (Italy); Sindona, A. [Dipartimento di Fisica, Università della Calabria and INFN – Gruppo collegato di Cosenza, Via P. Bucci cubo 33C, Arcavacata di Rende, Cosenza (Italy); Dukes, C.A. [Laboratory for Astrophysics and Surface Physics, Materials Science and Engineering University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904 (United States)

2017-04-04

We report on experiments designed to observe the correlation between the autoionization of doubly excited helium atoms and the Auger decay of 2p vacancies in Al. The autoionizing states are formed when incident He{sup +*} and He{sup ++} are neutralized by resonant electron capture at the surface. 2p excitation in Al occurs in dielectronic charge transfer during the close encounter of an excited helium ion and an Al atom. These results clarify the mechanism for Al-2p excitation in the case of singly charged ground state He{sup +}(1s) ion impact, where the dielectronic transition occurs after promotion of the 1s electron of incoming ions. - Highlights: • We observe the correlation between autoionization of doubly excited helium atoms and the Auger decay of 2p vacancies in Al. • 2p excitation in Al occurs in dielectronic charge transfer during the close encounter of an excited helium ion and an Al atom. • These results clarify the mechanism for Al-2p excitation in the case of singly charged ground state He{sup +}(1s) ion impact.

Electrical manipulation of oligonucleotides grafted to charged surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Rant, Ulrich; Arinaga, Kenji; Fujita, Shozo; Yokoyama, Naoki; Abstreiter, Gerhard; Tornow, Marc

2006-09-21

The electrical manipulation of short DNA molecules on surfaces offers novel functionalities with fascinating possibilities in the field of bio-interfaces. Here we present systematic investigations of the electrical interactions which govern the structure of oligonucleotides on charged gold surfaces. Successively, we address influences of the applied field strength, the role of DC electrode potentials, in particular for polycrystalline surfaces, as well as screening effects of the surrounding electrolyte solution. Data obtained for single and double stranded DNA exhibit differences which can be attributed to the dissimilar flexibility of the different molecular conformations. A comparison of the experimental results with a basic model shows how the alignment of the molecules adjusts according to a balance between electrically induced ordering and stochastic thermal motions. The presented conclusions are expected to be of general relevance for the behaviour of polyelectrolytes exposed to localized electric fields at interfaces.

Inversion of membrane surface charge by trivalent cations probed with a cation-selective channel.

Science.gov (United States)

Gurnev, Philip A; Bezrukov, Sergey M

2012-11-13

We demonstrate that the cation-selective channel formed by gramicidin A can be used as a reliable sensor for studying the multivalent ion accumulation at the surfaces of charged lipid membranes and the "charge inversion" phenomenon. In asymmetrically charged membranes with the individual leaflets formed from pure negative and positive lipids bathed by 0.1 M CsCl solutions the channel exhibits current rectification, which is comparable to that of a typical n/p semiconductor diode. We show that even at these highly asymmetrical conditions the channel conductance can be satisfactorily described by the electrodiffusion equation in the constant field approximation but, due to predictable limitations, only when the applied voltages do not exceed 50 mV. Analysis of the changes in the voltage-dependent channel conductance upon addition of trivalent cations allows us to gauge their interactions with the membrane surface. The inversion of the sign of the effective surface charge takes place at the concentrations, which correlate with the cation size. Specifically, these concentrations are close to 0.05 mM for lanthanum, 0.25 mM for hexaamminecobalt, and 4 mM for spermidine.

The surface chemistry of divalent metal carbonate minerals; a critical assessment of surface charge and potential data using the charge distribution multi-site ion complexation model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wolthers, M.; Charlet, L.; Van Cappellen, P.

2008-01-01

The Charge Distribution MUltiSite Ion Complexation or CD–MUSIC modeling approach is used to describe the chemical structure of carbonate mineralaqueous solution interfaces. The new model extends existing surface complexation models of carbonate minerals, by including atomic scale information on

Liouville master equation for multielectron dynamics: Neutralization of highly charged ions near a LiF surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wirtz, Ludger; Reinhold, Carlos O.; Lemell, Christoph; Burgdoerfer, Joachim

2003-01-01

We present a simulation of the neutralization of highly charged ions in front of a lithium fluoride surface including the close-collision regime above the surface. The present approach employs a Monte Carlo solution of the Liouville master equation for the joint probability density of the ionic motion and the electronic population of the projectile and the target surface. It includes single as well as double particle-hole (de)excitation processes and incorporates electron correlation effects through the conditional dynamics of population strings. The input in terms of elementary one- and two-electron transfer rates is determined from classical trajectory Monte Carlo calculations as well as quantum-mechanical Auger calculations. For slow projectiles and normal incidence, the ionic motion depends sensitively on the interplay between image acceleration towards the surface and repulsion by an ensemble of positive hole charges in the surface ('trampoline effect'). For Ne 10+ we find that image acceleration is dominant and no collective backscattering high above the surface takes place. For grazing incidence, our simulation delineates the pathways to complete neutralization. In accordance with recent experimental observations, most ions are reflected as neutral or even as singly charged negative particles, irrespective of the charge state of the incoming ions

Electrostatic energy and screened charge interaction near the surface of metals with different Fermi surface shape

Science.gov (United States)

Gabovich, A. M.; Il'chenko, L. G.; Pashitskii, E. A.; Romanov, Yu. A.

1980-04-01

Using the Poisson equation Green function for a self-consistent field in a spatially inhomogeneous system, expressions for the electrostatic energy and screened charge interaction near the surface of a semi-infinite metal and a thin quantizing film are derived. It is shown that the decrease law and Friedel oscillation amplitude of adsorbed atom indirect interaction are determined by the electron spectrum character and the Fermi surface shape. The results obtained enable us to explain, in particular, the submonolayer adsorbed film structure on the W and Mo surfaces.

Nanofabrication on a Si surface by slow highly charged ion impact

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tona, Masahide; Watanabe, Hirofumi; Takahashi, Satoshi; Nakamura, Nobuyuki; Yoshiyasu, Nobuo; Sakurai, Makoto; Terui, Toshifumi; Mashiko, Shinro; Yamada, Chikashi; Ohtani, Shunsuke

2007-01-01

We have observed surface chemical reactions which occur at the impact sites on a Si(1 1 1)-(7 x 7) surface and a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) surface bombarded by highly charged ions (HCIs) by using a scanning tunneling microscope (STM). Crater structures are formed on the Si(1 1 1)-(7 x 7) surface by single I 50+ -impacts. STM-observation for the early step of oxidation on the surface suggests that the impact site is so active that dangling bonds created by HCI impacts are immediately quenched by reaction with residual gas molecules. We show also the selective adsorption of organic molecules at a HCI-induced impact site on the HOPG surface

Experimental and statistical analysis of surface charge, aggregation and adsorption behaviors of surface-functionalized titanium dioxide nanoparticles in aquatic system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xiang Chengcheng [West Virginia University, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, WVNano Initiative (United States); Yang Feng, E-mail: feng.yang@mail.wvu.edu [West Virginia University, Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering (United States); Li Ming [West Virginia University, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, WVNano Initiative (United States); Jaridi, Majid [West Virginia University, Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering (United States); Wu Nianqiang, E-mail: nick.wu@mail.wvu.edu [West Virginia University, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, WVNano Initiative (United States)

2013-01-15

One hundred and fifty nanometers sized anatase titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO{sub 2} NPs) have been functionalized with the -CH{sub 3}, -NH{sub 2}, -SH, -OH, -COOH, and -SO{sub 3}H terminal groups. Surface charge, aggregation, and adsorption behaviors of the functionalized NPs in aquatic phase have been investigated by a set of experiments following the full factorial design. The dependence of surface charge, suspension size, and surface adsorption upon the various factors (including surface chemistry of NPs, the pH value, and ionic strength of an aqueous solution) has been studied with the statistical methods such as multiple linear regressions and multiple comparison tests. The surface functional group on the TiO{sub 2} NPs affects the characteristics in the simulated aquatic environment. The correlations among the characteristics of NPs have also been investigated by obtaining Pearson's correlation coefficient. The hydrodynamic size is negatively correlated with the absolute value of zeta potential, and positively correlated with the ionic strength. In the NaCl solution, the charge screening effect is responsible for the aggregation. In the CaCl{sub 2} solution, the charge screening effect is dominant mechanism for aggregation at a low salt concentration. In contrast, the interaction between Ca{sup 2+} ions and the specific functional group plays a significant role at a high salt concentration. The adsorption efficiency of humic acid decreases with an increase in the pH value, whereas increases with an increase in the ionic strength. The adsorption efficiency is positively correlated with the zeta potential. The statistical analysis methods and the results have implications in assessment of potential environmental risks posed by engineered nanoparticles.

Specification of electron radiation environment at GEO and MEO for surface charging estimates

Science.gov (United States)

Ganushkina, N.; Dubyagin, S.; Mateo Velez, J. C.; Liemohn, M. W.

2017-12-01

A series of anomalies at GEO have been attributed to electrons of energy below 100 keV, responsible for surface charging. The process at play is charge deposition on covering insulating surfaces and is directly linked to the space environment at a time scale of a few tens of seconds. Even though modern satellites benefited from the analysis of past flight anomalies and losses, it appears that surface charging remains a source of problems. Accurate specification of the space environment at different orbits is of a key importance. We present the operational model for low energy (model (IMPTAM). This model has been operating online since March 2013 (http://fp7-spacecast.eu and imptam.fmi.fi) and it is driven by the real time solar wind and IMF parameters and by the real time Dst index. The presented model provides the low energy electron flux at all L-shells and at all satellite orbits, when necessary. IMPTAM is used to simulate the fluxes of low energy electrons inside the Earth's magnetosphere at the time of severe events measured on LANL satellites at GEO. There is no easy way to say what will be the flux of keV electrons at MEO when surface charging events are detected at GEO than to use a model. The maximal electron fluxes obtained at MEO (L = 4.6) within a few tens of minutes hours following the LANL events at GEO have been extracted to feed a database of theoretical/numerical worst-case environments for surface charging at MEO. All IMPTAM results are instantaneous, data have not been average. In order to validate the IMPTAM output at MEO, we conduct the statistical analysis of measured electron fluxes onboard Van Allen Probes (ECT HOPE (20 eV-45 keV) and ECT MagEIS (30 - 300 keV) at distances of 4.6 Re. IMPTAM e- flux at MEO is used as input to SPIS, the Spacecraft Plasma Interaction System Software toolkit for spacecraft-plasma interactions and spacecraft charging modelling (http://dev.spis.org/projects/spine/home/spis). The research leading to these results

Inverse estimation for temperatures of outer surface and geometry of inner surface of furnace with two layer walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, C.-K.; Su, C.-R.

2008-01-01

This study provides an inverse analysis to estimate the boundary thermal behavior of a furnace with two layer walls. The unknown temperature distribution of the outer surface and the geometry of the inner surface were estimated from the temperatures of a small number of measured points within the furnace wall. The present approach rearranged the matrix forms of the governing differential equations and then combined the reversed matrix method, the linear least squares error method and the concept of virtual area to determine the unknown boundary conditions of the furnace system. The dimensionless temperature data obtained from the direct problem were used to simulate the temperature measurements. The influence of temperature measurement errors upon the precision of the estimated results was also investigated. The advantage of this approach is that the unknown condition can be directly solved by only one calculation process without initially guessed temperatures, and the iteration process of the traditional method can be avoided in the analysis of the heat transfer. Therefore, the calculation in this work is more rapid and exact than the traditional method. The result showed that the estimation error of the geometry increased with increasing distance between measured points and inner surface and in preset error, and with decreasing number of measured points. However, the geometry of the furnace inner surface could be successfully estimated by only the temperatures of a small number of measured points within and near the outer surface under reasonable preset error

Factors influencing the cytotoxicity of zinc oxide nanoparticles: particle size and surface charge

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baek, M; Kim, M K; Cho, H J; Lee, J A; Yu, J; Chung, H E; Choi, S J

2011-01-01

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticle is one of the most important materials in diverse applications, since it has UV light absorption, antimicrobial, catalytic, semi-conducting, and magnetic properties. However, there is little information about the toxicological effects of ZnO nanoparticles with respect to physicochemical properties. The aim of this study was, therefore, to evaluate the relationships between cytotoxicity and physicochemical properties of ZnO nanoparticle such as particle size and surface charge in human lung cells. Two different sizes of ZnO nanoparticles (20 and 70 nm) were prepared with positive (+) or negative (-) charge, and then, cytotoxicity of different ZnO nanoparticles was evaluated by measuring cell proliferation in short-term and long-term, membrane integrity, and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The results demonstrated that smaller particles exhibited high cytotoxic effects compared to larger particles in terms of inhibition of cell proliferation, membrane damage, and ROS generation. In addition, positively charged ZnO showed greater ROS production than ZnO with negative charge. These findings suggest that the cytoxicity of ZnO nanoparticles are strongly affected by their particle size and surface charge, highlighting the role of the physicochemical properties of nanoparticles to understand and predict their potential adverse effects on human.

Factors influencing the cytotoxicity of zinc oxide nanoparticles: particle size and surface charge

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baek, M; Kim, M K; Cho, H J; Lee, J A; Yu, J; Chung, H E; Choi, S J, E-mail: sjchoi@swu.ac.kr [Department of Food Science and Technology, Seoul Women' s University, 126 Gongneung 2-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul 139-774 (Korea, Republic of)

2011-07-06

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticle is one of the most important materials in diverse applications, since it has UV light absorption, antimicrobial, catalytic, semi-conducting, and magnetic properties. However, there is little information about the toxicological effects of ZnO nanoparticles with respect to physicochemical properties. The aim of this study was, therefore, to evaluate the relationships between cytotoxicity and physicochemical properties of ZnO nanoparticle such as particle size and surface charge in human lung cells. Two different sizes of ZnO nanoparticles (20 and 70 nm) were prepared with positive (+) or negative (-) charge, and then, cytotoxicity of different ZnO nanoparticles was evaluated by measuring cell proliferation in short-term and long-term, membrane integrity, and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The results demonstrated that smaller particles exhibited high cytotoxic effects compared to larger particles in terms of inhibition of cell proliferation, membrane damage, and ROS generation. In addition, positively charged ZnO showed greater ROS production than ZnO with negative charge. These findings suggest that the cytoxicity of ZnO nanoparticles are strongly affected by their particle size and surface charge, highlighting the role of the physicochemical properties of nanoparticles to understand and predict their potential adverse effects on human.

Surface behaviour of first-wall materials due to the synergistic effect of helium and hydrogen isotopes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abramov, E.; Moreno, D.; Solovioff, G.; Eliezer, D.

1994-01-01

Scanning electron microscopy has been used to investigate changes in surface morphology due to helium implantation and hydrogen charging. Pure polycrystalline nickel, OFHC copper and Cu-1.8Be-0.2Co (CAD 172) alloy have been studied. The influence of helium implantation parameters on blister formation and growth was investigated. Hydrogen charging (cathodic or thermal-gas) was found to lower the helium content needed for blistering and surface exfoliation. The effect of heating, carried out after hydrogen charging, was also studied. For the copper samples, hydrogen damage was produced by oxide reduction at the oxide-metal interface. This damage was found to be lower when the sputtering due to helium implantation increased. The CuBe alloy showed a greater hydrogen resistance due to the stability of the surface BeO. ((orig.))

An algorithm for three-dimensional Monte-Carlo simulation of charge distribution at biofunctionalized surfaces

KAUST Repository

Bulyha, Alena

2011-01-01

In this work, a Monte-Carlo algorithm in the constant-voltage ensemble for the calculation of 3d charge concentrations at charged surfaces functionalized with biomolecules is presented. The motivation for this work is the theoretical understanding of biofunctionalized surfaces in nanowire field-effect biosensors (BioFETs). This work provides the simulation capability for the boundary layer that is crucial in the detection mechanism of these sensors; slight changes in the charge concentration in the boundary layer upon binding of analyte molecules modulate the conductance of nanowire transducers. The simulation of biofunctionalized surfaces poses special requirements on the Monte-Carlo simulations and these are addressed by the algorithm. The constant-voltage ensemble enables us to include the right boundary conditions; the dna strands can be rotated with respect to the surface; and several molecules can be placed in a single simulation box to achieve good statistics in the case of low ionic concentrations relevant in experiments. Simulation results are presented for the leading example of surfaces functionalized with pna and with single- and double-stranded dna in a sodium-chloride electrolyte. These quantitative results make it possible to quantify the screening of the biomolecule charge due to the counter-ions around the biomolecules and the electrical double layer. The resulting concentration profiles show a three-layer structure and non-trivial interactions between the electric double layer and the counter-ions. The numerical results are also important as a reference for the development of simpler screening models. © 2011 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Mécanismes d'écoulement des charges à la surface des polymères granulaires

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Kachi

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Les forces électriques s’exerçant sur des polymères granulaires chargés sont mises à profit dans plusieurs processus électrostatiques. La dynamique de charges de surface de ces matériaux est très importante pour ce type de processus. Le but de ce papier est d’analyser l’écoulement des charges à la surface de couches compactes de polymères granulaires, en interprétant les mesures sans contact réalisées par trois sondes de potentiel, de champ et de charge, ayant chacune une taille différente. Des mesures du profile de potentiel à différents instants sont également réalisées afin d’expliquer les différences entre les vitesses de déclin de potentiel, de champ et de charge mesurées par les trois sondes. Les résultats mettent en évidence un écoulement transversal et longitudinal de la charge surfacique.

Higher dimensional curved domain walls on Kähler surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akbar, Fiki T., E-mail: ftakbar@fi.itb.ac.id [Theoretical Physics Laboratory, Theoretical High Energy Physics and Instrumentation Research Group, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Jl. Ganesha no. 10 Bandung, 40132 (Indonesia); Gunara, Bobby E., E-mail: bobby@fi.itb.ac.id [Theoretical Physics Laboratory, Theoretical High Energy Physics and Instrumentation Research Group, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Jl. Ganesha no. 10 Bandung, 40132 (Indonesia); Radjabaycolle, Flinn C. [Theoretical Physics Laboratory, Theoretical High Energy Physics and Instrumentation Research Group, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Jl. Ganesha no. 10 Bandung, 40132 (Indonesia); Departement of Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Cendrawasih University, Jl. Kampwolker Kampus Uncen Baru Waena-Jayapura 99351 (Indonesia); Wijaya, Rio N. [Theoretical Physics Laboratory, Theoretical High Energy Physics and Instrumentation Research Group, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Jl. Ganesha no. 10 Bandung, 40132 (Indonesia)

2017-03-15

In this paper we study some aspects of curved BPS-like domain walls in higher dimensional gravity theory coupled to scalars where the scalars span a complex Kähler surface with scalar potential turned on. Assuming that a fake superpotential has a special form which depends on Kähler potential and a holomorphic function, we prove that BPS-like equations have a local unique solution. Then, we analyze the vacuum structure of the theory including their stability using dynamical system and their existence in ultraviolet-infrared regions using renormalization group flow.

Higher dimensional curved domain walls on Kähler surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akbar, Fiki T.; Gunara, Bobby E.; Radjabaycolle, Flinn C.; Wijaya, Rio N.

2017-01-01

In this paper we study some aspects of curved BPS-like domain walls in higher dimensional gravity theory coupled to scalars where the scalars span a complex Kähler surface with scalar potential turned on. Assuming that a fake superpotential has a special form which depends on Kähler potential and a holomorphic function, we prove that BPS-like equations have a local unique solution. Then, we analyze the vacuum structure of the theory including their stability using dynamical system and their existence in ultraviolet-infrared regions using renormalization group flow.

Interaction of a relativistic charge with vacuum channel elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tatarnikov, V.A.

1989-01-01

The problems of beam acceleration and transport require accounting for the effects connected with natural fields of charged particles. Flying along the accelerating structure elements the bunch induces charges and currents on the walls which, in their turn, affect the accelerating particles creating a secondary electromagnetic field. The effect of vacuum channel walls on the charged particle energy is considered. In the approximation of an assigned current the expressions for integral changes in the energy of relativistic charge, are obtained. The difference in the nature of charge interaction with the inhomogeneities of the diaphragm type and a semiinfinite waveguide, is shown

The wall as witness-surface or, the Reichstag graffiti and paradoxes of writing over history

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ella Chmielewska

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Wall writing occupies a conflicted position in the urban space and in the public discourse as a political act and as an aesthetic phenomenon. Ever more present in the contemporary visual and conceptual vocabulary, it is increasingly deployed by the world of high art and politics, commerce and academia. Torn off the wall, taken as a photogenic empty sign, its potent meanings abstracted from its material surface, wall writing becomes a powerful rhetorical tool. Paris graffiti of‘68, NewYork subway art of the 70s and the pre-89 writing on the Berlin wall combine into an amalgam of aesthetic protest, graphically raw and resolutely awkward idiom that transforms an image of writing into a potent new text. The messiness of its lines, the untamed styles and the rebellious attitude towards the material surface all conspire to create the graffiti’s myth of freedom and unrestrained individual expression, further extended to associations with democratic ambitions. Supported by the popularity of hip-hop culture and the contemporary urban cool, graffiti becomes a handy implement to evoke the individual voice, endorse place identity or authenticity.

A space-charge treatment of the increased concentration of reactive species at the surface of a ceria solid solution

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zurhelle, Alexander F.; Souza, Roger A. de [Institute of Physical Chemistry, RWTH Aachen University (Germany); Tong, Xiaorui; Mebane, David S. [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV (United States); Klein, Andreas [Institute of Materials Science, TU Darmstadt (Germany)

2017-11-13

A space-charge theory applicable to concentrated solid solutions (Poisson-Cahn theory) was applied to describe quantitatively as a function of temperature and oxygen partial pressure published data obtained by in situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for the concentration of Ce{sup 3+} (the reactive species) at the surface of the oxide catalyst Ce{sub 0.8}Sm{sub 0.2}O{sub 1.9}. In contrast to previous theoretical treatments, these calculations clearly indicate that the surface is positively charged and compensated by an attendant negative space-charge zone. The high space-charge potential that develops at the surface (>0.8 V) is demonstrated to be hardly detectable by XPS measurements because of the short extent of the space-charge layer. This approach emphasizes the need to take into account defect interactions and to allow deviations from local charge neutrality when considering the surfaces of oxide catalysts. (copyright 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Buffer-eliminated, charge-neutral epitaxial graphene on oxidized 4H-SiC (0001) surface

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sirikumara, Hansika I.; Jayasekera, Thushari

2016-01-01

Buffer-eliminated, charge-neutral epitaxial graphene (EG) is important to enhance its potential in device applications. Using the first principles Density Functional Theory calculations, we investigated the effect of oxidation on the electronic and structural properties of EG on 4H-SiC (0001) surface. Our investigation reveals that the buffer layer decouples from the substrate in the presence of both silicate and silicon oxy-nitride at the interface, and the resultant monolayer EG is charge-neutral in both cases. The interface at 4H-SiC/silicate/EG is characterized by surface dangling electrons, which opens up another route for further engineering EG on 4H-SiC. Dangling electron-free 4H-SiC/silicon oxy-nitride/EG is ideal for achieving charge-neutral EG.

Modeling the Electric Potential and Surface Charge Density near Charged Thunderclouds

Science.gov (United States)

Neel, Matthew Stephen

2018-01-01

Thundercloud charge separation, or the process by which the bottom portion of a cloud gathers charge and the top portion of the cloud gathers the opposite charge, is still not thoroughly understood. Whatever the mechanism, though, a charge separation definitely exists and can lead to electrostatic discharge via cloud-to-cloud lightning and…

Adsorption of a cationic dye molecule on polystyrene microspheres in colloids: effect of surface charge and composition probed by second harmonic generation.

Science.gov (United States)

Eckenrode, Heather M; Jen, Shih-Hui; Han, Jun; Yeh, An-Gong; Dai, Hai-Lung

2005-03-17

Nonlinear optical probe, second harmonic generation (SHG), of the adsorption of the dye molecule malachite green (MG), in cationic form at pH polystyrene microspheres in aqueous solution is used to study the effect of surface charge and composition on molecular adsorption. Three types of polystyrene microspheres with different surface composition are investigated: (1) a sulfate terminated, anionic surface, (2) a neutral surface without any functional group termination, and (3) an amine terminated, cationic surface. The cationic dye was found to adsorb at all three surfaces, regardless of surface charge. The adsorption free energies, DeltaG's, measured for the three surfaces are -12.67, -12.39, and -10.46 kcal/mol, respectively, with the trend as expected from the charge interactions. The adsorption density on the anionic surface, where attractive charge-charge interaction dominates, is determined by the surface negative charge density. The adsorption densities on the neutral and cationic surfaces are on the other hand higher, perhaps as a result of a balance between minimizing repulsive charge interaction and maximizing attractive molecule-substrate and intermolecular interactions. The relative strength of the SH intensity per molecule, in combination of a model calculation, reveals that the C(2) axis of the MG molecule is nearly perpendicular to the surface on the anionic surface and tilts away from the surface norm when the surface is neutral and further away when cationic. Changing the pH of the solution may alter the surface charge and subsequently affect the adsorption configuration and SH intensity.

Interaction of slow, highly charged ions with the surface of ionic crystals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heller, Rene

2009-01-01

In this thesis the creation of permanent nanostructures induced by the impact of very slow (v≤5 x 10 5 m/s) highly charged (q≤40) ions on the ionic crystal surfaces of CaF 2 and KBr is investigated. The systematic analysis of the samples surfaces by means of atomic force microscopy supplies information on the influence of the potential as well as the kinetic projectile energy on the process of structure creation. The individual impact of highly charged ions on the KBr(001) surface can initiate the creation of mono-atomic deep pit-like structures -nanopits- with a lateral size of a few 10 nm. The volume of these pits and the corresponding number of sputtered secondary particles show a linear dependence on the projectiles potential energy. For the onset of pit formation a kinetic energy dependent threshold in the potential energy E grenz pot (E kin ) could be identified. Based on the defect-mediated desorption by electrons and by including effects of defect agglomeration a consistent model for the process of pit formation was drawn. In this work the recently discovered creation of hillock-like structures by impact of highly charged ions on CaF 2 (111) surfaces could be verified for lowest kinetic energies (E kin ≤150 eV x q). For the first time the potential energy of impinging projectiles could be identified to be exclusively responsible for the creation of nanostructures. Furthermore, a shift of potential energy threshold for hillock formation was observed for very small projectile velocities. Within the framework of cooperation with the Vienna University of Technology simulations based on the inelastic thermal spike model were performed, which allowed to interlink the individual hillock formation with a local melting of the ionic lattice. The essential influence of electron emission during the interaction of the highly charged ions with the surface on the process of nanostructuring was taken into consideration by complementary investigations of the secondary

SFG and SPR Study of Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate Film Assembly on Positively Charged Surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Sanghun; Weidner, Tobias; Wagner, Matthew; Castner, David

2012-02-01

This study uses sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensing to investigate the structure of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) films formed on positively charged and hydrophilic surfaces. The SPR signals show a good surface coverage suggesting that full monolayer coverage is reached at 1 mM. SFG spectra of SDS adsorbed exhibits well resolved CH3 peaks and OH peaks. At both 0.2 mM and 1 mM SDS concentration the intensity of both the CH3 and OH peaks decreased close to background levels. We found that the loss of SFG signal at 0.2 mM occurs at this concentration independent of surface charge density. It is more likely that the loss of signal is related to structural inhomogeneity induced by a striped phase - stand-up phase transition. This is supported by a distinct change of the relative SFG phase between CH3/OH near 0.2 mM. The second intensity minimum might be related to charge compensation effects. We observed a substrate dependence for the high concentration transition. We also observed distinct SFG signal phase changes for water molecules associated with SDS layers at different SDS solution concentrations indicating that the orientation of bound water changed with SDS surface structure.

Electrode property of single-walled carbon nanotubes in all-solid-state lithium ion battery using polymer electrolyte

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakamoto, Y.; Ishii, Y.; Kawasaki, S.

2016-01-01

Electrode properties of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in an all-solid-state lithium ion battery were investigated using poly-ethylene oxide (PEO) solid electrolyte. Charge-discharge curves of SWCNTs in the solid electrolyte cell were successfully observed. It was found that PEO electrolyte decomposes on the surface of SWCNTs.

Electrode property of single-walled carbon nanotubes in all-solid-state lithium ion battery using polymer electrolyte

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sakamoto, Y.; Ishii, Y.; Kawasaki, S., E-mail: kawasaki.shinji@nitech.ac.jp [Nagoya Institute of Technology, Gokiso, Showa, Nagoya, Aichi (Japan)

2016-07-06

Electrode properties of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in an all-solid-state lithium ion battery were investigated using poly-ethylene oxide (PEO) solid electrolyte. Charge-discharge curves of SWCNTs in the solid electrolyte cell were successfully observed. It was found that PEO electrolyte decomposes on the surface of SWCNTs.

An electrostatic charge measurement of blowing snow particles focusing on collision frequency to the snow surface

Science.gov (United States)

Omiya, S.; Sato, A.

2010-12-01

Blowing snow particles are known to have an electrostatic charge. This charge may be a contributing factor in the formation of snow drifts and snow cornices and changing of the trajectory of blowing snow particles. These formations and phenomena can cause natural disaster such as an avalanche and a visibility deterioration, and obstruct transportation during winter season. Therefore, charging phenomenon of the blowing snow particles is an important issue in terms of not only precise understanding of the particle motion but disaster prevention. The primary factor of charge accumulation to the blowing snow particles is thought to be due to “saltation” of them. The “saltation” is one of movement forms of blowing snow: when the snow particles are transported by the wind, they repeat frictional collisions with the snow surface. In previous studies, charge-to-mass ratios measured in the field were approximately -50 to -10 μC/kg, and in the wind tunnel were approximately -0.8 to -0.1 μC/kg. While there were qualitatively consistent in sign, negative, there were huge gaps quantitatively between them. One reason of those gaps is speculated to be due to differences in fetch. In other words, the difference of the collision frequency of snow particles to the snow surface has caused the gaps. But it is merely a suggestion and that has not been confirmed. The purpose of this experiment is to measure the charge of blowing snow particles focusing on the collision frequency and clarify the relationship between them. Experiments were carried out in the cryogenic wind tunnel of Snow and Ice Research Center (NIED, JAPAN). A Faraday cage and an electrometer were used to measure the charge of snow particles. These experiments were conducted over the hard snow surface condition to prevent the erosion of the snow surface and the generation of new snow particles from the surface. The collision frequency of particle was controlled by changing the wind velocity (4.5 to 7 m/s) under

Robust doubly charged nodal lines and nodal surfaces in centrosymmetric systems

Science.gov (United States)

Bzdušek, Tomáš; Sigrist, Manfred

2017-10-01

Weyl points in three spatial dimensions are characterized by a Z -valued charge—the Chern number—which makes them stable against a wide range of perturbations. A set of Weyl points can mutually annihilate only if their net charge vanishes, a property we refer to as robustness. While nodal loops are usually not robust in this sense, it has recently been shown using homotopy arguments that in the centrosymmetric extension of the AI symmetry class they nevertheless develop a Z2 charge analogous to the Chern number. Nodal loops carrying a nontrivial value of this Z2 charge are robust, i.e., they can be gapped out only by a pairwise annihilation and not on their own. As this is an additional charge independent of the Berry π -phase flowing along the band degeneracy, such nodal loops are, in fact, doubly charged. In this manuscript, we generalize the homotopy discussion to the centrosymmetric extensions of all Atland-Zirnbauer classes. We develop a tailored mathematical framework dubbed the AZ +I classification and show that in three spatial dimensions such robust and multiply charged nodes appear in four of such centrosymmetric extensions, namely, AZ +I classes CI and AI lead to doubly charged nodal lines, while D and BDI support doubly charged nodal surfaces. We remark that no further crystalline symmetries apart from the spatial inversion are necessary for their stability. We provide a description of the corresponding topological charges, and develop simple tight-binding models of various semimetallic and superconducting phases that exhibit these nodes. We also indicate how the concept of robust and multiply charged nodes generalizes to other spatial dimensions.

Behaviour of total surface charge in SiO2-Si system under short-pulsed ultraviolet irradiation cycles characterised by surface photo voltage technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Ban-Hong; Lee, Wah-Pheng; Yow, Ho-Kwang; Tou, Teck-Yong

2009-01-01

Effects of time-accumulated ultraviolet (UV) irradiation and surface treatment on thermally oxidized p-type silicon wafers were investigated by using the surface photo voltage (SPV) technique via the direct measurement of the total surface charge, Q SC . The rise and fall times of Q sc curves, as a function of accumulated UV irradiation, depended on the thermal oxide thickness. A simple model was proposed to explain the time-varying characteristics of Q sc based on the UV-induced bond breaking of SiOH and SiH, and photoemission of bulk electrons to wafer surface where O 2 - charges were formed. While these mechanisms resulted in charge variations and hence in Q sc , these could be removed by rinsing the silicon wafers in de-ionized water followed by spin-dry or blow-dry by an ionizer fan. Empirical parameters were used in the model simulations and curve-fitting of Q SC . The simulated results suggested that initial changes in the characteristic behaviour of Q sc were mainly due to the net changes in the positive and negative charges, but subsequently were dominated by the accumulation of O 2 - during the UV irradiation.

Charge Transfer Effect on Raman and Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy of Furfural Molecules.

Science.gov (United States)

Wan, Fu; Shi, Haiyang; Chen, Weigen; Gu, Zhaoliang; Du, Lingling; Wang, Pinyi; Wang, Jianxin; Huang, Yingzhou

2017-08-02

The detection of furfural in transformer oil through surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) is one of the most promising online monitoring techniques in the process of transformer aging. In this work, the Raman of individual furfural molecules and SERS of furfural-M x (M = Ag, Au, Cu) complexes are investigated through density functional theory (DFT). In the Raman spectrum of individual furfural molecules, the vibration mode of each Raman peak is figured out, and the deviation from experimental data is analyzed by surface charge distribution. In the SERS of furfural-M x complexes, the influence of atom number and species on SERS chemical enhancement factors (EFs) are studied, and are further analyzed by charge transfer effect. Our studies strengthen the understanding of charge transfer effect in the SERS of furfural molecules, which is important in the online monitoring of the transformer aging process through SERS.

The tritium confinement and surface chemistry of plasma facing materials in controlled D-T fusion devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, C.H.

1987-01-01

Tritium permeation through first walls, limiters or divertors subjected to energetic tritium charge exchange neutral bombardment is a potentially serious problem area for advanced D-T reactors operating at elevated temperatures. High concentrations of tritium in the near surface region can be reached by implantation of the charge neutral flux combined with a relatively slow recombination of these atoms into molecules at the plasma/ first wall interface. A concentration gradient is established, causing tritium to diffuse into the bulk and essentially to the outer wall surface where it can enter the first wall coolant. Since tritium separation from cooling water is very costly, release of even a small fraction of tritium to the environment could pose undesirable safety problems. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the tritium permeation. An analysis of the way of inhibition has been made. The tritium interacts with the solid surface of the plasma facing components, resulting in trapping and material erosion, and posing problems with respect to plasma density control. The erosion of the plasma facing component materials is mainly caused by physical and chemical erosion. A detailed analysis of chemical erosion by tritium has been performed and the results are described. (author)

Cell wall structure suitable for surface display of proteins in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Science.gov (United States)

Matsuoka, Hiroyuki; Hashimoto, Kazuya; Saijo, Aki; Takada, Yuki; Kondo, Akihiko; Ueda, Mitsuyoshi; Ooshima, Hiroshi; Tachibana, Taro; Azuma, Masayuki

2014-02-01

A display system for adding new protein functions to the cell surfaces of microorganisms has been developed, and applications of the system to various fields have been proposed. With the aim of constructing a cell surface environment suitable for protein display in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the cell surface structures of cell wall mutants were investigated. Four cell wall mutant strains were selected by analyses using a GFP display system via a GPI anchor. β-Glucosidase and endoglucanase II were displayed on the cell surface in the four mutants, and their activities were evaluated. mnn2 deletion strain exhibited the highest activity for both the enzymes. In particular, endoglucanase II activity using carboxymethylcellulose as a substrate in the mutant strain was 1.9-fold higher than that of the wild-type strain. In addition, the activity of endoglucanase II released from the mnn2 deletion strain by Zymolyase 20T treatment was higher than that from the wild-type strain. The results of green fluorescent protein (GFP) and endoglucanase displays suggest that the amounts of enzyme displayed on the cell surface were increased by the mnn2 deletion. The enzyme activity of the mnn2 deletion strain was compared with that of the wild-type strain. The relative value (mnn2 deletion mutant/wild-type strain) of endoglucanase II activity using carboxymethylcellulose as a substrate was higher than that of β-glucosidase activity using p-nitrophenyl-β-glucopyranoside as a substrate, suggesting that the cell surface environment of the mnn2 deletion strain facilitates the binding of high-molecular-weight substrates to the active sites of the displayed enzymes. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Growth and decay of surface charges in grafts of Teflon in electrets states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spinelli, I.M.M.

1971-01-01

The greatest problem founded in a cardiovascular implant is the thrombus formation. Teflon grafts were used in electret state for prothesis in vena cava of dogs. To put these grafts in an electret state a corona discharge in air was used and homocharge was formed predominantly. To measure the formed surface charge the oscillating capacitor technique was used. In the electret state the grafts have showed an initial density of charge of 10- 8 C/cm 2 and the charge decay and time decay of the samples were measured under many conditions. We found two activation energies, E 2 =0.17 e V and E 3 =1.12 e V, due to rapid and slow decay, respectively. The charged grafts were sterilized with ethilene gas oxide and this process apparently did not influence the charges

Effects of Macroion Geometry and Charge Discretization in Charge Reversal

OpenAIRE

Mukherjee, Arup K.

2008-01-01

The effects of discrete macroion surface charge distribution and valences of these surface charges and counterions on charge reversal have been studied for macroions of three different geometries and compared with those of continuous surface charge distributions. The geometry of the macroion has been observed to play an important role in overcharging in these cases. The interplay of valences of discrete microions and counterions have noticeable effects on overcharging efficiency. For some val...

Metallic Interface Emerging at Magnetic Domain Wall of Antiferromagnetic Insulator: Fate of Extinct Weyl Electrons

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Youhei Yamaji

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Topological insulators, in contrast to ordinary semiconductors, accompany protected metallic surfaces described by Dirac-type fermions. Here, we theoretically show that another emergent two-dimensional metal embedded in the bulk insulator is realized at a magnetic domain wall. The domain wall has long been studied as an ingredient of both old-fashioned and leading-edge spintronics. The domain wall here, as an interface of seemingly trivial antiferromagnetic insulators, emergently realizes a functional interface preserved by zero modes with robust two-dimensional Fermi surfaces, where pyrochlore iridium oxides proposed to host the condensed-matter realization of Weyl fermions offer such examples at low temperatures. The existence of in-gap states that are pinned at domain walls, theoretically resembling spin or charge solitons in polyacetylene, and protected as the edges of hidden one-dimensional weak Chern insulators characterized by a zero-dimensional class-A topological invariant, solves experimental puzzles observed in R_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7} with rare-earth elements R. The domain wall realizes a novel quantum confinement of electrons and embosses a net uniform magnetization that enables magnetic control of electronic interface transports beyond the semiconductor paradigm.

Bioactive surface modifications on inner walls of poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene tubes using dielectric barrier discharge

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Yong Ki; Park, Daewon; Kim, Hoonbae; Lee, Hyerim; Park, Heonyong; Kim, Hong Ja; Jung, Donggeun

2014-03-01

Bioactive surface modification can be used in a variety of medical polymeric materials in the fields of biochips and biosensors, artificial membranes, and vascular grafts. In this study, the surface modification of the inner walls of poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene (PTFE) tubing was carried out to improve vascular grafts, which are made of biocompatible material for the human body in the medical field. Focus was centered on the cell attachment of the inner wall of the PTFE by sequential processes of hydrogen plasma treatment, hydrocarbon deposition, and reactive plasma treatment on the PFTE surface using micro plasma discharge. Micro plasma was generated by a medium-frequency alternating current high-voltage generator. The preliminary modification of PTFE was conducted by a plasma of hydrogen and argon gases. The hydrocarbon thin film was deposited on modified PTFE with a mixture of acetylene and argon gases. The reactive plasma treatment using oxygen plasma was done to give biocompatible functionality to the inner wall surface. The hydrophobic surface of bare PTFE is made hydrophilic by the reactive plasma treatment due to the formation of carbonyl groups on the surface. The reactive treatment could lead to improved attachment of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) on the modified PTFE tubing. Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and water contact angle measurement were used for the analysis of the surface modification. The SMC-attached PTFE tube developed will be applicable to in vitro human vasculature-mimetic model systems, and to medical vascular grafts.

Catalytic Micromotors Moving Near Polyelectrolyte-Modified Substrates: The Roles of Surface Charges, Morphology, and Released Ions.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Mengshi; Zhou, Chao; Tang, Jinyao; Wang, Wei

2018-01-24

Synthetic microswimmers, or micromotors, are finding potential uses in a wide range of applications, most of which involve boundaries. However, subtle yet important effects beyond physical confinement on the motor dynamics remain less understood. In this letter, glass substrates were functionalized with positively and negatively charged polyelectrolytes, and the dynamics of micromotors moving close to the modified surfaces was examined. Using acoustic levitation and numerical simulation, we reveal how the speed of a chemically propelled micromotor slows down significantly near a polyelectrolyte-modified surface by the combined effects of surface charges, surface morphology, and ions released from the films.

Improving the Sound Pressure Level of Two-Dimensional Audio Actuators by Coating Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes on Piezoelectric Films.

Science.gov (United States)

Um, Keehong

2015-10-01

As devices for amplifying or transforming electronic signals into audible signals through electromechanical operations, acoustic actuators in the form of loudspeakers are usually solid structures in three dimensional space. Recently there has been increasing demand for mobile electronic devices, such as mobile phones, to become smaller, thinner, and lighter. In contrast to a three dimensional audio system with magnets, we have invented a new type of flexible two dimensional device by utilizing the reverse piezoelectric effect in certain piezoelectric materials. Crystalline piezoelectric materials show electromechanical interaction between the mechanical state and the electrically-charged state. The piezoelectric effect is a reversible process in that materials exhibiting the direct piezoelectric effect (the internal generation of electrical charge resulting from an applied mechanical force) also exhibit the reverse piezoelectric effect (the internal generation of a mechanical strain resulting from an applied electrical field). We have adopted the plasma surface treatment in order to put coating materials on the surface of piezoelectric film. We compared two kinds of coating material, indium tin oxide and single-walled carbon nanotube, and found that single-walled carbon nanotube shows better performance. The results showed improvement of output power in a wider range of operating frequency; for the surface resistance of 0.5 kΩ/square, the single-walled CNT shows the range of operating frequency to be 0.75-17.5 kHz, but ITO shows 2.5-13.4 kHz. For the surface resistance of 1 kΩ/square, single-walled CNT shows the range of operating frequency to be 0.81-17 kHz, but ITO shows it cannot generate audible sound.

Comparison of diffusion charging and mobility-based methods for measurement of aerosol agglomerate surface area.

Science.gov (United States)

Ku, Bon Ki; Kulkarni, Pramod

2012-05-01

We compare different approaches to measure surface area of aerosol agglomerates. The objective was to compare field methods, such as mobility and diffusion charging based approaches, with laboratory approach, such as Brunauer, Emmett, Teller (BET) method used for bulk powder samples. To allow intercomparison of various surface area measurements, we defined 'geometric surface area' of agglomerates (assuming agglomerates are made up of ideal spheres), and compared various surface area measurements to the geometric surface area. Four different approaches for measuring surface area of agglomerate particles in the size range of 60-350 nm were compared using (i) diffusion charging-based sensors from three different manufacturers, (ii) mobility diameter of an agglomerate, (iii) mobility diameter of an agglomerate assuming a linear chain morphology with uniform primary particle size, and (iv) surface area estimation based on tandem mobility-mass measurement and microscopy. Our results indicate that the tandem mobility-mass measurement, which can be applied directly to airborne particles unlike the BET method, agrees well with the BET method. It was also shown that the three diffusion charging-based surface area measurements of silver agglomerates were similar within a factor of 2 and were lower than those obtained from the tandem mobility-mass and microscopy method by a factor of 3-10 in the size range studied. Surface area estimated using the mobility diameter depended on the structure or morphology of the agglomerate with significant underestimation at high fractal dimensions approaching 3.

Charge transfer in carbon nanotube actuators investigated using in situ Raman spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gupta, S.; Hughes, M.; Windle, A.H.; Robertson, J.

2004-01-01

Charge transfer dynamics on the surface of single-wall carbon nanotube sheets is investigated using in situ Raman spectroscopy in order to understand the actuation mechanism of an electrochemical actuator and to determine associated parameters. We built an actuator from single-wall carbon nanotube mat and studied its actuation in several alkali metal (Li, Na, and K) and alkaline earth (Ca) halide and sulfate solutions in order to clarify the role of counterion as mobile ions in the film. The variation of bonding with applied potential was monitored using in situ Raman spectroscopy. This is because Raman can detect changes in C-C bond length: the radial breathing mode at ∼190 cm-1 varies inversely with the nanotube diameter, and the G band at ∼1590 cm-1 varies with the axial bond length. In addition, the intensities of both the modes vary with the emptying/depleting or filling of the bonding and antibonding states due to electrochemical charge injection. We discussed the variation of peak height and wave numbers of these modes providing valuable information concerning electrochemical charge injection on the carbon nanotube mat surface. We found in-plane microscopic compressive strain (∼-0.25%) and the equivalent charge transfer per carbon atom (f c ∼-0.005) as an upper bound for the actuators studied hereby. It is demonstrated that though the present analysis does comply with the proposition for the actuation principle made earlier, the quantitative estimates are significantly lower if compared with those of reported values. Furthermore, the extent of variation, i.e., coupled electro-chemo-mechanical response of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT) mat depended upon the type of counterion used (Group I versus Group II). The cyclic voltammetry and ac electrochemical impedance spectroscopy results were described briefly, which help to demonstrate well-developed capacitive behavior of SWNT mat and to estimate the specific capacitances as well. Summarizing, the

Ion association at discretely-charged dielectric interfaces: Giant charge inversion

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zhi-Yong; Wu, Jianzhong

2017-07-01

Giant charge reversal has been identified for the first time by Monte Carlo simulation for a discretely charged surface in contact with a trivalent electrolyte solution. It takes place regardless of the surface charge density under study and the monovalent salt. In stark contrast to earlier predictions based on the 2-dimensional Wigner crystal model to describe strong correlation of counterions at the macroion surface, we find that giant charge reversal reflects an intricate interplay of ionic volume effects, electrostatic correlations, surface charge heterogeneity, and the dielectric response of the confined fluids. While the novel phenomenon is yet to be confirmed with experiment, the simulation results appear in excellent agreement with a wide range of existing observations in the subregime of charge inversion. Our findings may have far-reaching implications to understanding complex electrochemical phenomena entailing ionic fluids under dielectric confinements.

Surface charges and Np(V) sorption on amorphous Al- and Fe- silicates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Del Nero, M.; Assada, A.; Barillon, R.; Duplatre, G.; Made, B.

2005-01-01

Full text of publication follows: Sorption onto Si-rich alteration layers of crystalline minerals and nuclear glasses, and onto amorphous secondary silicates of rocks and soils, are expected to retard the migration of actinides in the near- and far-field of HLW repositories. We present experimental and modeling studies on the effects of silicate structure and bulk chemistry, and of solution chemistry, on charges and adsorption of neptunyl ions at surfaces of synthetic, amorphous or poorly ordered silica, Al-silicates and Fe-silicates. The Al-silicates display similar pH-dependent surface charges characterized by predominant Si-O - Si sites, and similar surface affinities for neptunyl ions, irrespective to their Si/Al molar ratio (varying from 10 to 4.3). Such experimental features are explained by incorporation of Al atoms in tetrahedral position in the silicate lattice, leading to only trace amounts of high-affinity Al-OH surface groups due to octahedral Al. By contrast, the structure of the Fe-silicates ensures the occurrence of high-affinity Fe-OH surface groups, whose concentration is shown by proton adsorption measurements to increase with decreasing of the silicate Si/Fe molar ratio (from 10 to 2.3). Nevertheless, experimental data of the adsorption of neptunyl and electrolyte ions show unexpectedly weak effect of the Si/Fe ratio, and suggest predominant Si-OH surface groups. A possible explanation is that aqueous silicate anions, released by dissolution, adsorb at OH Fe - surface groups and / or precipitate as silica gel coatings, because experimental solutions were found at near-equilibrium with respect to amorphous silica. Therefore, the environmental sorption of Np(V) onto Si-rich, amorphous or poorly ordered Al-silicates may primarily depend on pH and silicate specific surface areas, given the low overall chemical affinity of such phases for dissolved metals. By contrast, the sorption of Np(V) on natural, amorphous or poorly ordered Fe-silicates may be a

Surface chemistry of first wall materials - From fundamental data to modeling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Linsmeier, Ch.; Reinelt, M.; Schmid, K.

2011-01-01

The application of different materials at the first wall of fusion devices, like beryllium, carbon, and tungsten in the case of ITER, unavoidably leads to the formation of compounds. These compounds are created dynamically during operation and depend on the local parameters like surface temperature, incoming particle energies and species. In dedicated, well-defined laboratory experiments, using mainly X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Rutherford backscattering analysis for qualitative and quantitative chemical surface analysis, the parameter space in relevant element combinations are investigated. These studies lead to a deep understanding of the reaction mechanisms under the applied conditions and to a quantitative description of reaction and diffusion processes. These data can be parameterized and integrated into a modeling approach which combines dynamic surface chemistry with the modeling of the transport in the plasma. Two different approaches for surface reaction modeling are compared and benchmarked with experimental data.

Multicharged ion-induced emission from metal- and insulator surfaces related to magnetic fusion research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Winter, H.P. [Technische Univ., Vienna (Austria). Inst. fuer Allgemeine Physik

1997-01-01

The edge region of magnetically confined plasmas in thermonuclear fusion experiments couples the hot plasma core with the cold first wall. We consider the dependence of plasma-wall interaction processes on edge plasma properties, with particular emphasis on the role of slow multicharged ions (MCI). After a short survey on the physics of slow MCI-surface interaction we discuss recent extensive studies on MCI-induced electron emission from clean metal surfaces conducted at impact velocities << 1 a.u., from which generally reliable total electron yields can be obtained. We then demonstrate the essentially different role of the MCI charge for electron emission from metallic and insulator surfaces, respectively. Furthermore, we present recent results on slow MCI-induced `potential sputtering` of insulators which, in contrast to the well established kinetic sputtering, already occurs at very low ion impact energy and strongly increases with the MCI charge state. (J.P.N.). 55 refs.

Oxidation and metal-insertion in molybdenite surfaces: evaluation of charge-transfer mechanisms and dynamics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shutthanandan V

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2, a layered transition-metal dichalcogenide, has been of special importance to the research community of geochemistry, materials and environmental chemistry, and geotechnical engineering. Understanding the oxidation behavior and charge-transfer mechanisms in MoS2 is important to gain better insight into the degradation of this mineral in the environment. In addition, understanding the insertion of metals into molybdenite and evaluation of charge-transfer mechanism and dynamics is important to utilize these minerals in technological applications. Furthermore, a detailed investigation of thermal oxidation behavior and metal-insertion will provide a basis to further explore and model the mechanism of adsorption of metal ions onto geomedia. The present work was performed to understand thermal oxidation and metal-insertion processes of molybdenite surfaces. The analysis was performed using atomic force microscopy (AFM, scanning electron microscopy (SEM, transmission electron microscopy (TEM, Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS, and nuclear reaction analysis (NRA. Structural studies using SEM and TEM indicate the local-disordering of the structure as a result of charge-transfer process between the inserted lithium and the molybdenite layer. Selected area electron diffraction measurements indicate the large variations in the diffusivity of lithium confirming that the charge-transfer is different along and perpendicular to the layers in molybdenite. Thermal heating of molybenite surface in air at 400°C induces surface oxidation, which is slow during the first hour of heating and then increases significantly. The SEM results indicate that the crystals formed on the molybdenite surface as a result of thermal oxidation exhibit regular thin-elongated shape. The average size and density of the crystals on the surface is dependent on the time of annealing; smaller size and high density during the first one-hour and

Oxidation and metal-insertion in molybdenite surfaces: evaluation of charge-transfer mechanisms and dynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramana, C V; Becker, U; Shutthanandan, V; Julien, C M

2008-06-05

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), a layered transition-metal dichalcogenide, has been of special importance to the research community of geochemistry, materials and environmental chemistry, and geotechnical engineering. Understanding the oxidation behavior and charge-transfer mechanisms in MoS2 is important to gain better insight into the degradation of this mineral in the environment. In addition, understanding the insertion of metals into molybdenite and evaluation of charge-transfer mechanism and dynamics is important to utilize these minerals in technological applications. Furthermore, a detailed investigation of thermal oxidation behavior and metal-insertion will provide a basis to further explore and model the mechanism of adsorption of metal ions onto geomedia.The present work was performed to understand thermal oxidation and metal-insertion processes of molybdenite surfaces. The analysis was performed using atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), and nuclear reaction analysis (NRA).Structural studies using SEM and TEM indicate the local-disordering of the structure as a result of charge-transfer process between the inserted lithium and the molybdenite layer. Selected area electron diffraction measurements indicate the large variations in the diffusivity of lithium confirming that the charge-transfer is different along and perpendicular to the layers in molybdenite. Thermal heating of molybenite surface in air at 400 degrees C induces surface oxidation, which is slow during the first hour of heating and then increases significantly. The SEM results indicate that the crystals formed on the molybdenite surface as a result of thermal oxidation exhibit regular thin-elongated shape. The average size and density of the crystals on the surface is dependent on the time of annealing; smaller size and high density during the first one-hour and significant

High-resolution 13C nuclear magnetic resonance evidence of phase transition of Rb,Cs-intercalated single-walled nanotubes

KAUST Repository

Bouhrara, M.

2011-09-06

We present 13 C high-resolution magic-angle-turning (MAT) and magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance data of Cs and Rb intercalated single walled carbon nanotubes. We find two distinct phases at different intercalation levels. A simple charge transfer is applicable at low intercalation level. The new phase at high intercalation level is accompanied by a hybridization of alkali (s) orbitals with the carbon (sp2) orbitals of the single walled nanotubes, which indicate bundle surface sites is the most probable alkali site.

The plasma-wall transition layers in the presence of collisions with a magnetic field parallel to the wall

Science.gov (United States)

Moritz, J.; Faudot, E.; Devaux, S.; Heuraux, S.

2018-01-01

The plasma-wall transition is studied by means of a particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation in the configuration of a parallel to the wall magnetic field (B), with collisions between charged particles vs. neutral atoms taken into account. The investigated system consists of a plasma bounded by two absorbing walls separated by 200 electron Debye lengths (λd). The strength of the magnetic field is chosen such as the ratio λ d / r l , with rl being the electron Larmor radius, is smaller or larger than unity. Collisions are modelled with a simple operator that reorients randomly ion or electron velocity, keeping constant the total kinetic energy of both the neutral atom (target) and the incident charged particle. The PIC simulations show that the plasma-wall transition consists in a quasi-neutral region (pre-sheath), from the center of the plasma towards the walls, where the electric potential or electric field profiles are well described by an ambipolar diffusion model, and in a second region at the vicinity of the walls, called the sheath, where the quasi-neutrality breaks down. In this peculiar geometry of B and for a certain range of the mean-free-path, the sheath is found to be composed of two charged layers: the positive one, close to the walls, and the negative one, towards the plasma and before the neutral pre-sheath. Depending on the amplitude of B, the spatial variation of the electric potential can be non-monotonic and presents a maximum within the sheath region. More generally, the sheath extent as well as the potential drop within the sheath and the pre-sheath is studied with respect to B, the mean-free-path, and the ion and electron temperatures.

Surface-plasmon dispersion relation for the inhomogeneous charge-density medium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harsh, O.K.; Agarwal, B.K.

1989-01-01

The surface-plasmon dispersion relation is derived for the plane-bounded electron gas when there is an inhomogeneous charge-density distribution in the plasma. The hydrodynamical model is used. Both cphi and dcphi/dx are taken to be continuous at the surface of the slab, where cphi is the scalar potential. The dispersion relation is compared with the theoretical works of Stern and Ferrell and of Harsh and Agarwal. It is also compared with the observations of Kunz. A dispersion relation for the volume-plasmon oscillations is derived which resembles the well-known relation of Bohm and Pines

Effect of hydrogen charging on the stability of SAE 10B22 steel surface in alkaline solutions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Modiano, S.; Carreno, J.A.; Fugivara, C.S.; Benedetti, A.V.; Mattos, O.R.

2005-01-01

The influence of hydrogen charging into a quenched and tempered boron steel membrane electrode (SAE 10B22) was studied using borate buffer (pH 8.4) and NaOH solutions (pH 12.7), with or without the addition of 0.01 M EDTA. At the hydrogen input side, hydrogen charging influenced cyclic voltammograms increasing the anodic charge of iron(II) hydroxide formation, and decreasing the donor density of passive films. These results suggest that the hydrogen ingress caused instability of metallic surface, increasing the surface area activity

Application of »Mass Titration« to Determination of Surface Charge of Metal Oxides

OpenAIRE

1998-01-01

The mass titration method, used for the point of zero charge determination, was extended to the measurement of the surface charge density. The results agree with the common method, which is the acid-base titration of the colloidal suspension. The advantage of mass titration is that one does not need to perform blank titration, instead one simply adds metal oxide powder to the electrolyte aqueous solution of known pH. To cover the pH range above and below the point of zero charge, two experime...

Measurement of surface charges on the dielectric film based on field mills under the HVDC corona wire

Science.gov (United States)

Donglai, WANG; Tiebing, LU; Yuan, WANG; Bo, CHEN; Xuebao, LI

2018-05-01

The ion flow field on the ground is one of the significant parameters used to evaluate the electromagnetic environment of high voltage direct current (HVDC) power lines. HVDC lines may cross the greenhouses due to the restricted transmission corridors. Under the condition of ion flow field, the dielectric films on the greenhouses will be charged, and the electric fields in the greenhouses may exceed the limit value. Field mills are widely used to measure the ground-level direct current electric fields under the HVDC power lines. In this paper, the charge inversion method is applied to calculate the surface charges on the dielectric film according to the measured ground-level electric fields. The advantages of hiding the field mill probes in the ground are studied. The charge inversion algorithm is optimized in order to decrease the impact of measurement errors. Based on the experimental results, the surface charge distribution on a piece of quadrate dielectric film under a HVDC corona wire is studied. The enhanced effect of dielectric film on ground-level electric field is obviously weakened with the increase of film height. Compared with the total electric field strengths, the normal components of film-free electric fields at the corresponding film-placed positions have a higher effect on surface charge accumulation.

Advances in NO2 sensing with individual single-walled carbon nanotube transistors.

Science.gov (United States)

Chikkadi, Kiran; Muoth, Matthias; Roman, Cosmin; Haluska, Miroslav; Hierold, Christofer

2014-01-01

The charge carrier transport in carbon nanotubes is highly sensitive to certain molecules attached to their surface. This property has generated interest for their application in sensing gases, chemicals and biomolecules. With over a decade of research, a clearer picture of the interactions between the carbon nanotube and its surroundings has been achieved. In this review, we intend to summarize the current knowledge on this topic, focusing not only on the effect of adsorbates but also the effect of dielectric charge traps on the electrical transport in single-walled carbon nanotube transistors that are to be used in sensing applications. Recently, contact-passivated, open-channel individual single-walled carbon nanotube field-effect transistors have been shown to be operational at room temperature with ultra-low power consumption. Sensor recovery within minutes through UV illumination or self-heating has been shown. Improvements in fabrication processes aimed at reducing the impact of charge traps have reduced the hysteresis, drift and low-frequency noise in carbon nanotube transistors. While open challenges such as large-scale fabrication, selectivity tuning and noise reduction still remain, these results demonstrate considerable progress in transforming the promise of carbon nanotube properties into functional ultra-low power, highly sensitive gas sensors.

Effect of far-UV and near-UV radiation on the cell surface charge of the protozoan Tritrichomonas foetus

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Silva Filho, F C; Elias, C A; Souza, W de

1986-05-01

Cell electrophoresis was used to detect the effect of far-UV or near-UV radiation on the cell surface charge of the pathogenic protozoan Tritrichomonas foetus. Either far-UV or near-UV radiation interfered with the surface charge of T. foetus at fluences which inhibited cell growth by 50%. Both UV-radiations induced a significant decrease on surface charge of T. foetus, as evaluated by measurement of its electrophoretic mobility (EPM). Determinations of EPM of protozoa in solution of low ionic strength indicated that the decrease in the EPM induced by far-UV is much less pronounced that that observed for near-UV or control cells.

Effect of far-UV and near-UV radiation on the cell surface charge of the protozoan Tritrichomonas foetus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silva Filho, F.C.; Elias, C.A.; Souza, W. de

1986-01-01

Cell electrophoresis was used to detect the effect of far-UV or near-UV radiation on the cell surface charge of the pathogenic protozoan Tritrichomonas foetus. Either far-UV or near-UV radiation interfered with the surface charge of T. foetus at fluences which inhibited cell growth by 50%. Both UV-radiations induced a significant decrease on surface charge of T. foetus, as evaluated by measurement of its electrophoretic mobility (EPM). Determinations of EPM of protozoa in solution of low ionic strength indicated that the decrease in the EPM induced by far-UV is much less pronounced that that observed for near-UV or control cells. (author)

Interactions Between Charged Macroions Mediated by Molecules with Rod-like Charged Structures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bohinc, K.

2014-03-01

Full Text Available A short review of recent theoretical advances in studies of the interaction between highly charged systems embedded in a solution of rod-like molecules is presented. The system is theoretically described by the functional density theory, where the correlations within the rod-like molecules are accounted for. We show that for sufficiently long molecules and large surface charge densities, an attractive force between like-charged surfaces arises due to the spatially distributed charges within the molecules. The added salt has an influence on the condition for the attractive force between like-charged surfaces. The theoretical results are compared with Monte Carlo simulations. Many phenomena motivate the study of the interaction between like-charged surfaces (DNA condensation, virus aggregation, yeast flocculation, cohesion of cement paste.

Summary of SLAC's SEY Measurement On Flat Accelerator Wall Materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Le Pimpec, F.; /PSI, Villigen /SLAC

2007-06-08

The electron cloud effect (ECE) causes beam instabilities in accelerator structures with intense positively charged bunched beams. Reduction of the secondary electron yield (SEY) of the beam pipe inner wall is effective in controlling cloud formation. We summarize SEY results obtained from flat TiN, TiZrV and Al surfaces carried out in a laboratory environment. SEY was measured after thermal conditioning, as well as after low energy, less than 300 eV, particle exposure.

Optimization of multiplane ?PIV for wall shear stress and wall topography characterization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rossi, M.; Lindken, R.; Westerweel, J.

2009-01-01

Multiplane ?PIV can be utilized to determine the wall shear stress and wall topology from the measured flow over a structured surface. A theoretical model was developed to predict the measurement error for the surface topography and shear stress, based on a theoretical analysis of the precision in

Polar surface energies of iono-covalent materials: implications of a charge-transfer model tested on Li2FeSiO4 surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Hörmann, Nicolas G; Groß, Axel

2014-07-21

The ionic compounds that are used as electrode materials in Li-based rechargeable batteries can exhibit polar surfaces that in general have high surface energies. We derive an analytical estimate for the surface energy of such polar surfaces assuming charge redistribution as a polarity compensating mechanism. The polar contribution to the converged surface energy is found to be proportional to the bandgap multiplied by the surface charge necessary to compensate for the depolarization field, and some higher order correction terms that depend on the specific surface. Other features, such as convergence behavior, coincide with published results. General conclusions are drawn on how to perform polar surface energy calculations in a slab configuration and upper boundaries of "purely" polar surface energies are estimated. Furthermore, we compare these findings with results obtained in a density functional theory study of Li(2)FeSiO(4) surfaces. We show that typical polar features are observed and provide a decomposition of surface energies into polar and local bond-cutting contributions for 29 different surfaces. We show that the model is able to explain subtle differences of GGA and GGA+U surface energy calculations. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Triboelectricity: macroscopic charge patterns formed by self-arraying ions on polymer surfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Burgo, Thiago A L; Ducati, Telma R D; Francisco, Kelly R; Clinckspoor, Karl J; Galembeck, Fernando; Galembeck, Sergio E

2012-05-15

Tribocharged polymers display macroscopically patterned positive and negative domains, verifying the fractal geometry of electrostatic mosaics previously detected by electric probe microscopy. Excess charge on contacting polyethylene (PE) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) follows the triboelectric series but with one caveat: net charge is the arithmetic sum of patterned positive and negative charges, as opposed to the usual assumption of uniform but opposite signal charging on each surface. Extraction with n-hexane preferentially removes positive charges from PTFE, while 1,1-difluoroethane and ethanol largely remove both positive and negative charges. Using suitable analytical techniques (electron energy-loss spectral imaging, infrared microspectrophotometry and carbonization/colorimetry) and theoretical calculations, the positive species were identified as hydrocarbocations and the negative species were identified as fluorocarbanions. A comprehensive model is presented for PTFE tribocharging with PE: mechanochemical chain homolytic rupture is followed by electron transfer from hydrocarbon free radicals to the more electronegative fluorocarbon radicals. Polymer ions self-assemble according to Flory-Huggins theory, thus forming the experimentally observed macroscopic patterns. These results show that tribocharging can only be understood by considering the complex chemical events triggered by mechanical action, coupled to well-established physicochemical concepts. Patterned polymers can be cut and mounted to make macroscopic electrets and multipoles.

Wetting of a Charged Surface of Glassy Carbon by Molten Alkali-Metal Chlorides

Science.gov (United States)

Stepanov, V. P.

2018-03-01

Values of the contact angle of wetting of a surface of glassy carbon by molten chlorides of lithium, sodium, potassium, and cesium are measured by the meniscus weight method to determine the common factors of wettability of solid surfaces by ionic melts upon a change in the salt phase composition and a jump in electric potential. It is found that with a potential shift in the positive direction the shape of the curve of the contact angle's dependence on the potential varies upon substitution of one salt by another: the angle of wetting shrinks monotonously in lithium chloride but remains constant in molten cesium chloride. This phenomenon is explained by the hypothesis that the nature of the halide anion adsorption on the positively charged surface of an electrode is chemical and not electrostatic. It is shown that the adsorption process is accompanied by charge transfer through the interface, with covalent bonding between the adsorbent and adsorbate.

Layer-dependent surface potential of phosphorene and anisotropic/layer-dependent charge transfer in phosphorene-gold hybrid systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Renjing; Yang, Jiong; Zhu, Yi; Yan, Han; Pei, Jiajie; Myint, Ye Win; Zhang, Shuang; Lu, Yuerui

2016-01-07

The surface potential and the efficiency of interfacial charge transfer are extremely important for designing future semiconductor devices based on the emerging two-dimensional (2D) phosphorene. Here, we directly measured the strong layer-dependent surface potential of mono- and few-layered phosphorene on gold, which is consistent with the reported theoretical prediction. At the same time, we used an optical way photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy to probe charge transfer in the phosphorene-gold hybrid system. We firstly observed highly anisotropic and layer-dependent PL quenching in the phosphorene-gold hybrid system, which is attributed to the highly anisotropic/layer-dependent interfacial charge transfer.

Effects of piston surface treatments on performance and emissions of a methanol-fueled, direct injection, stratified charge engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

West, B.; Green, J.B. [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)

1994-07-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of thermal barrier coatings and/or surface treatments on the performance and emissions of a methanol-fueled, direct-injection, stratified-charge (DISC) engine. A Ricardo Hydra Mark III engine was used for this work and in previous experiments at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). The primary focus of the study was to examine the effects of various piston insert surface treatments on hydrocarbon (HC) and oxides of nitrogen (NO{sub x}) emissions. Previous studies have shown that engines of this class have a tendency to perform poorly at low loads and have high unburned fuel emissions. A blank aluminum piston was modified to employ removable piston bowl inserts. Four different inserts were tested in the experiment: aluminum, stainless steel with a 1.27-mm (0.050-in.) air gap (to act as a thermal barrier), and two stainless steel/air-gap inserts with coatings. Two stainless steel inserts were dimensionally modified to account for the coating thickness (1.27-mm) and coated identically with partially stabilized zirconia (PSZ). One of the coated inserts then had an additional seal-coat applied. The coated inserts were otherwise identical to the stainless steel/air-gap insert (i.e., they employed the same 1.27-mm air gap). Thermal barrier coatings were employed in an attempt to increase combustion chamber surface temperatures, thereby reducing wall quenching and promoting more complete combustion of the fuel in the quench zone. The seal-coat was applied to the zirconia to reduce the surface porosity; previous research suggested that despite the possibly higher surface temperatures obtainable with a ceramic coating, the high surface area of a plasma-sprayed coating may actually allow fuel to adhere to the surface and increase the unburned fuel emissions and fuel consumption.

Multiply charged carbon-ion production for medical application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kitagawa, A.; Muramatsu, M.; Sasaki, N.; Takasugi, W.; Wakaisami, S.; Biri, S.; Drentje, A. G.

2008-01-01

Over 3000 cancer patients have already been treated by the heavy-ion medical accelerator in Chiba at the National Institute of Radiological Sciences since 1994. The clinical results have clearly verified the effectiveness and safety of heavy-ion radiotherapy. The most important result has been to establish that the carbon ion is one of the most effective radiations for radiotherapy. The ion source is required to realize a stable beam with the same conditions for daily operation. However, the deposition of carbon ions on the wall of the plasma chamber is normally unavoidable. This causes an ''anti-wall-coating effect,'' i.e., a decreasing of the beam, especially for the higher charge-state ions due to the surface material of the wall. The ion source must be required to produce a sufficiently intense beam under the bad condition. Other problems were solved by improvements and maintenance, and thus we obtained enough reproducibility and stability along with decreased failures. We summarize our over 13 years of experience, and show the scope for further developments

Turbine airfoil with outer wall thickness indicators

Science.gov (United States)

Marra, John J; James, Allister W; Merrill, Gary B

2013-08-06

A turbine airfoil usable in a turbine engine and including a depth indicator for determining outer wall blade thickness. The airfoil may include an outer wall having a plurality of grooves in the outer surface of the outer wall. The grooves may have a depth that represents a desired outer surface and wall thickness of the outer wall. The material forming an outer surface of the outer wall may be removed to be flush with an innermost point in each groove, thereby reducing the wall thickness and increasing efficiency. The plurality of grooves may be positioned in a radially outer region of the airfoil proximate to the tip.

Charged particle beam scanning using deformed high gradient insulator

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yu -Jiuan

2015-10-06

Devices and methods are provided to allow rapid deflection of a charged particle beam. The disclosed devices can, for example, be used as part of a hadron therapy system to allow scanning of a target area within a patient's body. The disclosed charged particle beam deflectors include a dielectric wall accelerator (DWA) with a hollow center and a dielectric wall that is substantially parallel to a z-axis that runs through the hollow center. The dielectric wall includes one or more deformed high gradient insulators (HGIs) that are configured to produce an electric field with an component in a direction perpendicular to the z-axis. A control component is also provided to establish the electric field component in the direction perpendicular to the z-axis and to control deflection of a charged particle beam in the direction perpendicular to the z-axis as the charged particle beam travels through the hollow center of the DWA.

Nano-scale surface modification of materials with slow, highly charged ion beams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakurai, M.; Tona, M.; Takahashi, S.; Watanabe, H.; Nakamura, N.; Yoshiyasu, N.; Yamada, C.; Ohtani, S.; Sakaue, H.A.; Kawase, Y.; Mitsumori, K.; Terui, T.; Mashiko, S.

2007-01-01

Some results on surface modification of Si and graphite with highly charged ions (HCIs) are presented. Modified surfaces were observed using scanning tunneling microscopy. Crater-like structure with a diameter in nm region is formed on a Si(1 1 1)-(7 x 7) surface by the incidence of a single HCI. The protrusion structure is formed on a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite surface on the other hand, and the structure becomes an active site for molecular adsorption. A new, intense HCI source and an experimental apparatus are under development in order to process and observe aligned nanostructures created by the impact of collimated HCI beam

The description of charge transfer in fast negative ions scattering on water covered Si(100) surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Lin; Qiu, Shunli; Liu, Pinyang; Xiong, Feifei; Lu, Jianjie; Liu, Yuefeng; Li, Guopeng; Liu, Yiran; Ren, Fei; Xiao, Yunqing; Gao, Lei; Zhao, Qiushuang; Ding, Bin; Li, Yuan [School of Nuclear Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, 730000 (China); Key Laboratory of Special Function Materials and Structure Design, Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, 730000 (China); Guo, Yanling, E-mail: guoyanling@lzu.edu.cn [School of Nuclear Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, 730000 (China); Key Laboratory of Special Function Materials and Structure Design, Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, 730000 (China); Chen, Ximeng, E-mail: chenxm@lzu.edu.cn [School of Nuclear Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, 730000 (China); Key Laboratory of Special Function Materials and Structure Design, Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, 730000 (China)

2016-11-30

Highlights: • We first observe that negative-ion fractions present no variation with the doping concentration, which is very different from the results of low energy Li neutralization from doped Si samples. • Our work shows that the affinity levels and collision time significantly counteract the band gap effect on negative ion formation. The work will improve our understanding on electron transfer on semiconductor surfaces associated with doping. • In addition, we build a complete theoretical framework to quantitatively calculate the negative-ion fractions. • Our work is related to charge transfer on semiconductor surfaces, which will be of interest to a broad audience due to the wide necessity of the knowledge of charge exchange on semiconductor surfaces in different fields. - Abstract: Doping has significantly affected the characteristics and performance of semiconductor electronic devices. In this work, we study the charge transfer processes for 8.5–22.5 keV C{sup −} and F{sup −} ions scattering on H{sub 2}O-terminated p-type Si(100) surfaces with two different doping concentrations. We find that doping has no influence on negative-ion formation for fast collisions in this relatively high energy range. Moreover, we build a model to calculate negative ion fractions including the contribution from positive ions. The calculations support the nonadiabatic feature of charge transfer.

Stable cycling of double-walled silicon nanotube battery anodes through solid–electrolyte interphase control

KAUST Repository

Wu, Hui

2012-03-25

Although the performance of lithium ion-batteries continues to improve, their energy density and cycle life remain insufficient for applications in consumer electronics, transport and large-scale renewable energy storage 1-5. Silicon has a large charge storage capacity and this makes it an attractive anode material, but pulverization during cycling and an unstable solid-electrolyte interphase has limited the cycle life of silicon anodes to hundreds of cycles 6-11. Here, we show that anodes consisting of an active silicon nanotube surrounded by an ion-permeable silicon oxide shell can cycle over 6,000 times in half cells while retaining more than 85% of their initial capacity. The outer surface of the silicon nanotube is prevented from expansion by the oxide shell, and the expanding inner surface is not exposed to the electrolyte, resulting in a stable solid-electrolyte interphase. Batteries containing these double-walled silicon nanotube anodes exhibit charge capacities approximately eight times larger than conventional carbon anodes and charging rates of up to 20C (a rate of 1C corresponds to complete charge or discharge in one hour). © 2012 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.

Attachment of Salmonella strains to a plant cell wall model is modulated by surface characteristics and not by specific carbohydrate interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Michelle Sze-Fan; Moore, Sean C; Tabor, Rico F; Fegan, Narelle; Rahman, Sadequr; Dykes, Gary A

2016-09-15

Processing of fresh produce exposes cut surfaces of plant cell walls that then become vulnerable to human foodborne pathogen attachment and contamination, particularly by Salmonella enterica. Plant cell walls are mainly composed of the polysaccharides cellulose, pectin and hemicelluloses (predominantly xyloglucan). Our previous work used bacterial cellulose-based plant cell wall models to study the interaction between Salmonella and the various plant cell wall components. We demonstrated that Salmonella attachment was favoured in the presence of pectin while xyloglucan had no effect on its attachment. Xyloglucan significantly increased the attachment of Salmonella cells to the plant cell wall model only when it was in association with pectin. In this study, we investigate whether the plant cell wall polysaccharides mediate Salmonella attachment to the bacterial cellulose-based plant cell wall models through specific carbohydrate interactions or through the effects of carbohydrates on the physical characteristics of the attachment surface. We found that none of the monosaccharides that make up the plant cell wall polysaccharides specifically inhibit Salmonella attachment to the bacterial cellulose-based plant cell wall models. Confocal laser scanning microscopy showed that Salmonella cells can penetrate and attach within the tightly arranged bacterial cellulose network. Analysis of images obtained from atomic force microscopy revealed that the bacterial cellulose-pectin-xyloglucan composite with 0.3 % (w/v) xyloglucan, previously shown to have the highest number of Salmonella cells attached to it, had significantly thicker cellulose fibrils compared to other composites. Scanning electron microscopy images also showed that the bacterial cellulose and bacterial cellulose-xyloglucan composites were more porous when compared to the other composites containing pectin. Our study found that the attachment of Salmonella cells to cut plant cell walls was not mediated by

The toxicity of plastic nanoparticles to green algae as influenced by surface modification, medium hardness and cellular adsorption

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nolte, Tom M.; Hartmann, Nanna B.; Kleijn, J. Mieke

2017-01-01

To investigate processes possibly underlying accumulation and ecological effects of plastic nano-particles we have characterized their interaction with the cell wall of green algae. More specifically, we have investigated the influence of particle surface functionality and water hardness (Ca2......+ concentration) on particle adsorption to algae cell walls. Polystyrene nanoparticles with different functional groups (non-functionalized, −COOH and −NH2) as well as coated (starch and PEG) gold nanoparticles were applied in these studies. Depletion measurements and atomic force microscopy (AFM) showed...... that adsorption of neutral and positively charged plastic nanoparticles onto the cell wall of P. subcapitata was stronger than that of negatively charged plastic particles. Results indicated that binding affinity is a function of both inter-particle and particle-cell wall interactions which are in turn influenced...

Using the lambda function to evaluate probe measurements of charged dielectric surfaces

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rerup, T. O.; Crichton, George C; McAllister, Iain Wilson

1996-01-01

The use of Pedersen's λ function to evaluate electrostatic probe measurements of charged dielectric surfaces is demonstrated. With a knowledge of the probe λ function, the procedure by which this function is employed is developed, and thereafter applied to a set of experimental measurements avail...

Scattering of atoms by solid surfaces: A CCGM theory of diffraction by a one-dimensional stationary periodic wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goodman, F.O.; Scribani, L.

1981-01-01

The CCGM theory of elastic atom--surface scattering, proposed by Cabrera, Celli, Goodman, and Manson [Surf. Sci. 19, 67 (1970)], is applied to the now-popular corrugated wall model of the scattering. Instead of the original ''hard'' wall, a ''softer'' wall, with finite potential step height, is used. The CCGM soft-wall results are compared with corresponding exact hard-wall results, for corrugations of the sinusoidal type and of other types, for example those with nondifferentiable corrugation functions. It is concluded that the CCGM soft-wall results agree well with the exact hard-wall results provided that neither the dimensionless corrugation amplitude nor the dimensionless atom wave number is too large, although no explanation of the reason for this agreement is given. The results are important because a typical exact calculation may be far more time consuming than is a typical CCGM calculation, particularly for the ''nastier'' corrugation functions

Binding of chloroquine to ionic micelles: Effect of pH and micellar surface charge

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Souza Santos, Marcela de, E-mail: marcelafarmausp77@gmail.com [Departamento de Física e Química, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida do Café, s/n, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo 14040-903 (Brazil); Perpétua Freire de Morais Del Lama, Maria, E-mail: mpemdel@fcfrp.usp.br [Departamento de Física e Química, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida do Café, s/n, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo 14040-903 (Brazil); Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia de Bioanalítica, Departamento de Química Analítica, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Cidade Universitária Zeferino Vaz, s/n, Campinas, São Paulo 13083-970 (Brazil); Siuiti Ito, Amando, E-mail: amandosi@ffclrp.usp.br [Departamento de Física, Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida Bandeirantes, 3900, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo 14040-901 (Brazil); and others

2014-03-15

The pharmacological action of chloroquine relies on its ability to cross biological membranes in order to accumulate inside lysosomes. The present work aimed at understanding the basis for the interaction between different chloroquine species and ionic micelles of opposite charges, the latter used as a simple membrane model. The sensitivity of absorbance and fluorescence of chloroquine to changes in its local environment was used to probe its interaction with cetyltrimethylammonium micelles presenting bromide (CTAB) and sulfate (CTAS) as counterions, in addition to dodecyl sulfate micelles bearing sodium (SDS) and tetramethylammonium (TMADS) counterions. Counterion exchange was shown to have little effect on drug–micelle interaction. Chloroquine first dissociation constant (pKa{sub 1}) shifted to opposite directions when anionic and cationic micelles were compared. Chloroquine binding constants (K{sub b}) revealed that electrostatic forces mediate charged drug–micelle association, whereas hydrophobic interactions allowed neutral chloroquine to associate with anionic and cationic micelles. Fluorescence quenching studies indicated that monoprotonated chloroquine is inserted deeper into the micelle surface of anionic micelles than its neutral form, the latter being less exposed to the aqueous phase when associated with cationic over anionic assemblies. The findings provide further evidence that chloroquine–micelle interaction is driven by a tight interplay between the drug form and the micellar surface charge, which can have a major effect on the drug biological activity. -- Highlights: • Chloroquine (CQ) pKa{sub 1} increased for SDS micelles and decreased for CTAB micelles. • CQ is solubilized to the surface of both CTAB and SDS micelles. • Monoprotonated CQ is buried deeper into SDS micelles than neutral CQ. • Neutral CQ is less exposed to aqueous phase in CTAB over SDS micelles. • Local pH and micellar surface charge mediate interaction of CQ with

Ambiguous walls

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mody, Astrid

2012-01-01

The introduction of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) in the built environment has encouraged myriad applications, often embedded in surfaces as an integrated part of the architecture. Thus the wall as responsive luminous skin is becoming, if not common, at least familiar. Taking into account how wall...

Surface Charging and Points of Zero Charge

CERN Document Server

Kosmulski, Marek

2009-01-01

Presents Points of Zero Charge data on well-defined specimen of materials sorted by trademark, manufacturer, and location. This text emphasizes the comparison between particular results obtained for different portions of the same or very similar material and synthesizes the information published in research reports over the past few decades

Effect of surface bilayer charges on the magnetic field around ionic channels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gomes Soares, Marília Amável [Post-graduation in Computational Sciences, Rio de Janeiro State University (Brazil); Cortez, Celia Martins, E-mail: ccortezs@ime.uerj.br [Post-graduation in Computational Sciences, Rio de Janeiro State University (Brazil); Department of Applied Mathematics, Rio de Janeiro State University (Brazil); Oliveira Cruz, Frederico Alan de [Post-graduation in Computational Sciences, Rio de Janeiro State University (Brazil); Department of Physics, Rural Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil); Silva, Dilson [Post-graduation in Computational Sciences, Rio de Janeiro State University (Brazil); Department of Applied Mathematics, Rio de Janeiro State University (Brazil)

2017-01-01

In this work, we present a physic-mathematical model for representing the ion transport through membrane channels, in special Na{sup +} and K{sup +}-channels, and discuss the influence of surface bilayer charges on the magnetic field behavior around the ionic current. The model was composed of a set of equations, including: a nonlinear differential Poisson-Boltzmann equation which usually allows to estimate the surface potentials and electric potential profile across membrane; equations for the ionic flux through channel and the ionic current density based on Armstrong's model for Na{sup +} and K{sup +} permeability and other Physics concepts; and a magnetic field expression derived from the classical Ampère equation. Results from computational simulations using the finite element method suggest that the ionic permeability is strongly dependent of surface bilayer charges, the current density through a K{sup +}-channel is very less sensible to temperature changes than the current density through a Na{sup +}- channel, active Na{sup +}-channels do not directly interfere with the K{sup +}-channels around, and vice-versa, since the magnetic perturbation generated by an active channel is of short-range.

Simulation study of charged nanoparticles confined in a rectangular tube with discrete wall charges.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuet, Pak K

2006-03-28

The development of novel nanomaterials has been a subject of intense interest in recent years. An interesting structure among these materials is the so-called "pea pods" (i.e., nanoparticles confined in nanotubes). To facilitate the development and commercialization of these materials, it is important that we have an in-depth understanding of their behavior. The study of confined charged particles is particularly challenging because of the long-ranged nature of electrostatic interaction, and both interparticle and particle-confinement interactions are likely to play a role in determining the system behavior. The primary objective of this study is to develop a better understanding of the behavior of charged nanoparticles in a charged tubular confinement using Monte Carlo simulation, with particular focus on the effect of electrostatic interactions on the structure of the particles. Simulation results have shown that (i) the structuring of confined particles is associated with the asymmetry of the long-ranged interaction and (ii) factors such as confinement geometry and particle charge and size asymmetry can be manipulated to produce different particle structures. The present study represents the first step in an attempt to gain further insight into the behavior of confined nanosystems, with the ultimate objective of exploiting these characteristics, particularly the interactions between the confined particles and their external environment, in developing novel nanomaterials.

Charge transfer rates for xenon Rydberg atoms at metal and semiconductor surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dunning, F.B. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Rice University, MS 61, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005-1892 (United States)]. E-mail: fbd@rice.edu; Wethekam, S. [Institut fuer Physik der Humboldt-Universitaet zu Berlin, Newtonstr. 15, D-12489 Berlin (Germany); Dunham, H.R. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Rice University, MS 61, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005-1892 (United States); Lancaster, J.C. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Rice University, MS 61, 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005-1892 (United States)

2007-05-15

Recent progress in the study of charge exchange between xenon Rydberg atoms and surfaces is reviewed. Experiments using Au(1 1 1) surfaces show that under appropriate conditions each incident atom can be detected as an ion. The ionization dynamics, however, are strongly influenced by the perturbations in the energies and structure of the atomic states that occur as the ion collection field is applied and as the atom approaches the surface. These lead to avoided crossings between different atomic levels causing the atom to successively assume the character of a number of different states and lose much of its initial identity. The effects of this mixing are discussed. Efficient surface ionization is also observed at Si(1 0 0) surfaces although the ion signal is influenced by stray fields present at the surface.

Charge gradient microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Roelofs, Andreas; Hong, Seungbum

2018-02-06

A method for rapid imaging of a material specimen includes positioning a tip to contact the material specimen, and applying a force to a surface of the material specimen via the tip. In addition, the method includes moving the tip across the surface of the material specimen while removing electrical charge therefrom, generating a signal produced by contact between the tip and the surface, and detecting, based on the data, the removed electrical charge induced through the tip during movement of the tip across the surface. The method further includes measuring the detected electrical charge.

Learning-based automated segmentation of the carotid artery vessel wall in dual-sequence MRI using subdivision surface fitting.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Shan; van 't Klooster, Ronald; Kitslaar, Pieter H; Coolen, Bram F; van den Berg, Alexandra M; Smits, Loek P; Shahzad, Rahil; Shamonin, Denis P; de Koning, Patrick J H; Nederveen, Aart J; van der Geest, Rob J

2017-10-01

The quantification of vessel wall morphology and plaque burden requires vessel segmentation, which is generally performed by manual delineations. The purpose of our work is to develop and evaluate a new 3D model-based approach for carotid artery wall segmentation from dual-sequence MRI. The proposed method segments the lumen and outer wall surfaces including the bifurcation region by fitting a subdivision surface constructed hierarchical-tree model to the image data. In particular, a hybrid segmentation which combines deformable model fitting with boundary classification was applied to extract the lumen surface. The 3D model ensures the correct shape and topology of the carotid artery, while the boundary classification uses combined image information of 3D TOF-MRA and 3D BB-MRI to promote accurate delineation of the lumen boundaries. The proposed algorithm was validated on 25 subjects (48 arteries) including both healthy volunteers and atherosclerotic patients with 30% to 70% carotid stenosis. For both lumen and outer wall border detection, our result shows good agreement between manually and automatically determined contours, with contour-to-contour distance less than 1 pixel as well as Dice overlap greater than 0.87 at all different carotid artery sections. The presented 3D segmentation technique has demonstrated the capability of providing vessel wall delineation for 3D carotid MRI data with high accuracy and limited user interaction. This brings benefits to large-scale patient studies for assessing the effect of pharmacological treatment of atherosclerosis by reducing image analysis time and bias between human observers. © 2017 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Surface charge-specific interactions between polymer nanoparticles and ABC transporters in Caco-2 cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhattacharjee, Sourav, E-mail: sourav.bhattacharjee@wur.nl [Wageningen University, Laboratory of Organic Chemistry (Netherlands); Opstal, Edward J. van; Alink, Gerrit M. [Wageningen University, Division of Toxicology (Netherlands); Marcelis, Antonius T. M.; Zuilhof, Han [Wageningen University, Laboratory of Organic Chemistry (Netherlands); Rietjens, Ivonne M. C. M. [Wageningen University, Division of Toxicology (Netherlands)

2013-06-15

The surface charge-dependent transport of polymeric nanoparticles (PNPs) across Caco-2 monolayers grown on transwell culture systems as an in vitro model for intestinal transport was tested. The transport of well-characterized, monodisperse, and fluorescent tri-block copolymer nanoparticles (TCNPs/size {approx}45 nm) and polystyrene nanoparticles (PSNPs/size {approx}50 nm), with different surface charges (positive and negative), was quantified. The positive PNPs showed a higher intracellular uptake and flux across the Caco-2 monolayers than the negative PNPs. Multidrug resistance/P-glycoprotein (MDR1/P-gp), a specific ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter, was found to play a major role in the cellular efflux of positive PNPs, whereas the multidrug resistance protein 1 took part in the efflux of negative PNPs from Caco-2 cells. The positive PNPs also caused an increased cellular uptake and apical to basolateral transport of the carcinogen PhIP across the Caco-2 monolayer. The flavonoid quercetin, which is known to interact with ABC transporters, promoted the intracellular uptake of different PNPs and interfered with the normal distribution patterns of PNPs in the transwell system. These results indicate that PNPs display surface charge-specific interactions with ABC transporters and can even affect the bioavailability of toxic food-borne compounds (like pro-carcinogens).

Surface charge-specific interactions between polymer nanoparticles and ABC transporters in Caco-2 cells

Science.gov (United States)

Bhattacharjee, Sourav; van Opstal, Edward J.; Alink, Gerrit M.; Marcelis, Antonius T. M.; Zuilhof, Han; Rietjens, Ivonne M. C. M.

2013-06-01

The surface charge-dependent transport of polymeric nanoparticles (PNPs) across Caco-2 monolayers grown on transwell culture systems as an in vitro model for intestinal transport was tested. The transport of well-characterized, monodisperse, and fluorescent tri-block copolymer nanoparticles (TCNPs/size 45 nm) and polystyrene nanoparticles (PSNPs/size 50 nm), with different surface charges (positive and negative), was quantified. The positive PNPs showed a higher intracellular uptake and flux across the Caco-2 monolayers than the negative PNPs. Multidrug resistance/P-glycoprotein (MDR1/P-gp), a specific ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter, was found to play a major role in the cellular efflux of positive PNPs, whereas the multidrug resistance protein 1 took part in the efflux of negative PNPs from Caco-2 cells. The positive PNPs also caused an increased cellular uptake and apical to basolateral transport of the carcinogen PhIP across the Caco-2 monolayer. The flavonoid quercetin, which is known to interact with ABC transporters, promoted the intracellular uptake of different PNPs and interfered with the normal distribution patterns of PNPs in the transwell system. These results indicate that PNPs display surface charge-specific interactions with ABC transporters and can even affect the bioavailability of toxic food-borne compounds (like pro-carcinogens).

Surface charge-specific interactions between polymer nanoparticles and ABC transporters in Caco-2 cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhattacharjee, Sourav; Opstal, Edward J. van; Alink, Gerrit M.; Marcelis, Antonius T. M.; Zuilhof, Han; Rietjens, Ivonne M. C. M.

2013-01-01

The surface charge-dependent transport of polymeric nanoparticles (PNPs) across Caco-2 monolayers grown on transwell culture systems as an in vitro model for intestinal transport was tested. The transport of well-characterized, monodisperse, and fluorescent tri-block copolymer nanoparticles (TCNPs/size ∼45 nm) and polystyrene nanoparticles (PSNPs/size ∼50 nm), with different surface charges (positive and negative), was quantified. The positive PNPs showed a higher intracellular uptake and flux across the Caco-2 monolayers than the negative PNPs. Multidrug resistance/P-glycoprotein (MDR1/P-gp), a specific ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter, was found to play a major role in the cellular efflux of positive PNPs, whereas the multidrug resistance protein 1 took part in the efflux of negative PNPs from Caco-2 cells. The positive PNPs also caused an increased cellular uptake and apical to basolateral transport of the carcinogen PhIP across the Caco-2 monolayer. The flavonoid quercetin, which is known to interact with ABC transporters, promoted the intracellular uptake of different PNPs and interfered with the normal distribution patterns of PNPs in the transwell system. These results indicate that PNPs display surface charge-specific interactions with ABC transporters and can even affect the bioavailability of toxic food-borne compounds (like pro-carcinogens).

Inclined-wall regular micro-pillar-arrayed surfaces covered entirely with an alumina nanowire forest and their improved superhydrophobicity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Dae-Ho; Lee, Dongyun; Cho, Chae-Ryong; Kim, Soo-Hyung; Lee, Deug-Woo; Kim, Jong-Man; Kim, Yongsung; Kang, Jae-Wook; Hong, Suck Won

2011-01-01

This paper reports a multiple-scale hierarchically structured superhydrophobic surface that is composed of inclined-wall regular micro-pillar arrays covered entirely with an alumina nanowire forest (ANF) to improve the surface wettability. The multiple-scaled structures were fabricated stably using a simple batch process based on an anisotropic chemical silicon etching process and a subsequent time-controlled anodic aluminum oxide technique. The surface wetting properties of the mono-roughened surfaces with inclined-wall micro-pillar arrays, which are normally in the Wenzel wetting regime, could be transitioned perfectly to the slippery Cassie mode and enhanced greatly in the Wenzel regime in cases of a high- and low-density of the micro-pillars, respectively, by easily amplifying the intrinsic contact angle through the entire coverage of the ANF on the micro-roughened surfaces. The wettability of the proposed multiple-scaled surfaces could also be predicted using analytic surface models and the experimental results agreed greatly with the wetting trends estimated theoretically due to the geometrical regularity of the base micro-structures

Synthesis of Stable Interfaces on SnO2 Surfaces for Charge-Transfer Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Benson, Michelle C.

The commercial market for solar harvesting devices as an alternative energy source requires them to be both low-cost and efficient to replace or reduce the dependence on fossil fuel burning. Over the last few decades there has been promising efforts towards improving solar devices by using abundant and non-toxic metal oxide nanomaterials. One particular metal oxide of interest has been SnO2 due to its high electron mobility, wide-band gap, and aqueous stability. However SnO2 based solar cells have yet to reach efficiency values of other metal oxides, like TiO2. The advancement of SnO2 based devices is dependent on many factors, including improved methods of surface functionalization that can yield stable interfaces. This work explores the use of a versatile functionalization method through the use of the Cu(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) reaction. The CuAAC reaction is capable of producing electrochemically, photochemically, and electrocatalytically active surfaces on a variety of SnO2 materials. The resulting charge-transfer characteristics were investigated as well as an emphasis on understanding the stability of the resulting molecular linkage. We determined the CuAAC reaction is able to proceed through both azide-modified and alkyne-modified surfaces. The resulting charge-transfer properties showed that the molecular tether was capable of supporting charge separation at the interface. We also investigated the enhancement of electron injection upon the introduction of an ultra-thin ZrO2 coating on SnO2. Several complexes were used to fully understand the charge-transfer capabilities, including model systems of ferrocene and a ruthenium coordination complex, a ruthenium mononuclear water oxidation catalyst, and a commercial ruthenium based dye.

A variable pressure method for characterizing nanoparticle surface charge using pore sensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Vogel, Robert; Anderson, Will; Eldridge, James; Glossop, Ben; Willmott, Geoff

2012-04-03

A novel method using resistive pulse sensors for electrokinetic surface charge measurements of nanoparticles is presented. This method involves recording the particle blockade rate while the pressure applied across a pore sensor is varied. This applied pressure acts in a direction which opposes transport due to the combination of electro-osmosis, electrophoresis, and inherent pressure. The blockade rate reaches a minimum when the velocity of nanoparticles in the vicinity of the pore approaches zero, and the forces on typical nanoparticles are in equilibrium. The pressure applied at this minimum rate can be used to calculate the zeta potential of the nanoparticles. The efficacy of this variable pressure method was demonstrated for a range of carboxylated 200 nm polystyrene nanoparticles with different surface charge densities. Results were of the same order as phase analysis light scattering (PALS) measurements. Unlike PALS results, the sequence of increasing zeta potential for different particle types agreed with conductometric titration.

Photoinduced Charge Transfer from Titania to Surface Doping Site.

Science.gov (United States)

Inerbaev, Talgat; Hoefelmeyer, James D; Kilin, Dmitri S

2013-05-16

We evaluate a theoretical model in which Ru is substituting for Ti at the (100) surface of anatase TiO 2 . Charge transfer from the photo-excited TiO 2 substrate to the catalytic site triggers the photo-catalytic event (such as water oxidation or reduction half-reaction). We perform ab-initio computational modeling of the charge transfer dynamics on the interface of TiO 2 nanorod and catalytic site. A slab of TiO 2 represents a fragment of TiO 2 nanorod in the anatase phase. Titanium to ruthenium replacement is performed in a way to match the symmetry of TiO 2 substrate. One molecular layer of adsorbed water is taken into consideration to mimic the experimental conditions. It is found that these adsorbed water molecules saturate dangling surface bonds and drastically affect the electronic properties of systems investigated. The modeling is performed by reduced density matrix method in the basis of Kohn-Sham orbitals. A nano-catalyst modeled through replacement defect contributes energy levels near the bottom of the conduction band of TiO 2 nano-structure. An exciton in the nano-rod is dissipating due to interaction with lattice vibrations, treated through non-adiabatic coupling. The electron relaxes to conduction band edge and then to the Ru cite with faster rate than hole relaxes to the Ru cite. These results are of the importance for an optimal design of nano-materials for photo-catalytic water splitting and solar energy harvesting.

Characterization of size, surface charge, and agglomeration state of nanoparticle dispersions for toxicological studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang Jingkun; Oberdoerster, Guenter; Biswas, Pratim

2009-01-01

Characterizing the state of nanoparticles (such as size, surface charge, and degree of agglomeration) in aqueous suspensions and understanding the parameters that affect this state are imperative for toxicity investigations. In this study, the role of important factors such as solution ionic strength, pH, and particle surface chemistry that control nanoparticle dispersion was examined. The size and zeta potential of four TiO 2 and three quantum dot samples dispersed in different solutions (including one physiological medium) were characterized. For 15 nm TiO 2 dispersions, the increase of ionic strength from 0.001 M to 0.1 M led to a 50-fold increase in the hydrodynamic diameter, and the variation of pH resulted in significant change of particle surface charge and the hydrodynamic size. It was shown that both adsorbing multiply charged ions (e.g., pyrophosphate ions) onto the TiO 2 nanoparticle surface and coating quantum dot nanocrystals with polymers (e.g., polyethylene glycol) suppressed agglomeration and stabilized the dispersions. DLVO theory was used to qualitatively understand nanoparticle dispersion stability. A methodology using different ultrasonication techniques (bath and probe) was developed to distinguish agglomerates from aggregates (strong bonds), and to estimate the extent of particle agglomeration. Probe ultrasonication performed better than bath ultrasonication in dispersing TiO 2 agglomerates when the stabilizing agent sodium pyrophosphate was used. Commercially available Degussa P25 and in-house synthesized TiO 2 nanoparticles were used to demonstrate identification of aggregated and agglomerated samples.

Bounds on area and charge for marginally trapped surfaces with a cosmological constant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simon, Walter

2012-01-01

We sharpen the known inequalities AΛ ≤ 4π(1 - g) (Hayward et al 1994 Phys. Rev. D 49 5080, Woolgar 1999 Class. Quantum Grav. 16 3005) and A ≤ 4πQ 2 (Dain et al 2012 Class. Quantum Grav. 29 035013) between the area A and the electric charge Q of a stable marginally outer-trapped surface (MOTS) of genus g in the presence of a cosmological constant Λ. In particular, instead of requiring stability we include the principal eigenvalue λ of the stability operator. For Λ* Λ+λ > 0, we obtain a lower and an upper bound for Λ*A in terms of Λ*Q 2 , as well as the upper bound Q≤1/(2√(Λ * )) for the charge, which reduces to Q≤1/(2√(Λ)) in the stable case λ ≥ 0. For Λ* < 0, there only remains a lower bound on A. In the spherically symmetric, static, stable case, one of our area inequalities is saturated iff the surface gravity vanishes. We also discuss implications of our inequalities for 'jumps' and mergers of charged MOTS. (fast track communication)

Development of GaN-based nanosensors using surface charge lithography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Popa, Veaceslav; Braniste, Tudor; Volciuc, Olesea; Pavlidis, Dimitris; Sarua, Andrei; Kuball, Martin; Heard, Peter

2011-01-01

Semiconductor nanotechnology is a fast developing branch of modern engineering that offers perspectives for the development of electronic devices with superior parameters. A special and important niche in nanotechnology is allocated to the fabrication of nanosensors which are expected to exhibit higher sensitivity in comparison with classical microelectronic sensors. Various aspects of fabrication of GaN based nanosensors using Surface Charge Lithography are discussed and preliminary tests for gas sensors applications are presented.

Adhesion of cultured human endothelial cells onto methacrylate polymers with varying surface wettability and charge

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Wachem, P.B.; Hogt, A.H.; Beugeling, T.; Feijen, Jan; Bantjes, A.; Detmers, J.P.; van Aken, W.G.

1987-01-01

The adhesion of human endothelial cells (HEC) onto a series of well-characterized methacrylate polymer surfaces with varying wettabilities and surface charges was studied either in serum-containing (CMS) or in serum-free (CM) culture medium. HEC adhesion in CMS onto (co)polymers * of hydroxyethyl

Surface complexation of selenite on goethite: MO/DFT geometry and charge distribution

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hiemstra, T.; Rietra, R.P.J.J.; Riemsdijk, van W.H.

2007-01-01

The adsorption of selenite on goethite (alpha-FeOOH) has been analyzed with the charge distribution (CD) and the multi-site surface complexation (MUSIC) model being combined with an extended Stem (ES) layer model option. The geometry of a set of different types of hydrated iron-selenite complexes

Discrete element method modeling of the triboelectric charging of polyethylene particles: Can particle size distribution and segregation reduce the charging?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Konopka, Ladislav; Kosek, Juraj

2015-01-01

Polyethylene particles of various sizes are present in industrial gas-dispersion reactors and downstream processing units. The contact of the particles with a device wall as well as the mutual particle collisions cause electrons on the particle surface to redistribute in the system. The undesirable triboelectric charging results in several operational problems and safety risks in industrial systems, for example in the fluidized-bed polymerization reactor. We studied the charging of polyethylene particles caused by the particle-particle interactions in gas. Our model employs the Discrete Element Method (DEM) describing the particle dynamics and incorporates the ‘Trapped Electron Approach’ as the physical basis for the considered charging mechanism. The model predicts the particle charge distribution for systems with various particle size distributions and various level of segregation. Simulation results are in a qualitative agreement with experimental observations of similar particulate systems specifically in two aspects: 1) Big particles tend to gain positive charge and small particles the negative one. 2) The wider the particle size distribution is, the more pronounced is the charging process. Our results suggest that not only the size distribution, but also the effect of the spatial segregation of the polyethylene particles significantly influence the resulting charge distribution ‘generated’ in the system. The level of particle segregation as well as the particle size distribution of polyethylene particles can be in practice adjusted by the choice of supported catalysts, by the conditions in the fluidized-bed polymerization reactor and by the fluid dynamics. We also attempt to predict how the reactor temperature affects the triboelectric charging of particles. (paper)

Supercapacitance of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes-Polypyrrole Composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matei Raicopol

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The composites based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs and conducting polymers (CPs are promising materials for supercapacitor devices due to their unique nanostructure that combines the large pseudocapacitance of the CPs with the fast charging/discharging double-layer capacitance and excellent mechanical properties of the CNTs. Here, we report a new electrochemical method to obtain polypyrrole (PPY/single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT composites. In the first step, the SWCNTs are covalently functionalized with monomeric units of pyrrole by esterification of acyl chloride functionalized SWCNTs and N-(6-hydroxyhexylpyrrole. In the second step, the PPY/SWCNTs composites are obtained by copolymerizing the pyrrole monomer with the pyrrole units grafted on SWCNTs surface using controlled potential electrolysis. The composites were further characterized by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The results showed good electrochemical charge storage properties for the synthesized composites based on PPY and SWCNTs covalently functionalized with pyrrole units making them promising electrode materials for high power supercapacitors.

A Combined Model of Charging of the Surface and Bulk of a Dielectric Target by Electrons with the Energies 10-30 keV

Science.gov (United States)

Zykov, V. M.; Neiman, D. A.

2018-04-01

A physico-mathematical model of the processes of radiation-induced charging of dielectric materials with open surfaces, irradiated with monoenergetic electrons in the energy range 10-30 keV, is described. The model takes into account the relationship between the processes of surface and bulk charging for the given conditions of the experimental design, which accounts for the effect of anomalously long charging of dielectrics after the incident energy of primary electrons during charging is reduced to below the second critical energy for the secondary electronic emission coefficient. The initial fast phase of charging a high-resistivity dielectric material (Al2O3) is investigated. It is shown that as the incident electron energy is approaching the second critical energy during charging, the secondary electronic emission is partially suppressed due to negative charging of the open surface of the dielectric and formation of a near-surface inversion electrical field retarding the electronic emission yield.

Plasma surface engineering in first wall of tokamak

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Xiang; Xu Zengyu; Zhang Fu; Zhang Nianman

2001-01-01

The boronization, siliconization and lithium coating of the inner wall of HL-1M are introduced, the hydrogen recycling and the influence to impurities controlled and core radiation energy loss are discussed. Experiments prove that these wall treatments are very useful for the plasma confinement, a 4 s reproducible long pulse discharge is obtained for siliconized wall, but the plasma pulse length only achieves 2.1 s and its reproducibility is very poor for boronized wall. Lithium coating is the best method of the wall treatments for lowering hydrogen recycling and decreasing the impurities level. For the applications of HL-2A and the future fusion device, a series of B, Ti, Si-doped graphite and B 4 C-C/C composites have been developed, some experimental results about chemical sputtering, tritium retention and recycling, as well as high heat loads are reviewed. Meanwhile, SiC, TiC and B 4 C coating, and B 4 C-C, SiC-C, B 4 C-Cu, Mo-Cu and W-Cu functionally graded materials are also introduced

The role of surface charge in cellular uptake and cytotoxicity of medical nanoparticles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fröhlich E

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Eleonore FröhlichCenter for Medical Research, Medical University of Graz, Graz, AustriaAbstract: Many types of nanoparticles (NPs are tested for use in medical products, particularly in imaging and gene and drug delivery. For these applications, cellular uptake is usually a prerequisite and is governed in addition to size by surface characteristics such as hydrophobicity and charge. Although positive charge appears to improve the efficacy of imaging, gene transfer, and drug delivery, a higher cytotoxicity of such constructs has been reported. This review summarizes findings on the role of surface charge on cytotoxicity in general, action on specific cellular targets, modes of toxic action, cellular uptake, and intracellular localization of NPs. Effects of serum and intercell type differences are addressed. Cationic NPs cause more pronounced disruption of plasma-membrane integrity, stronger mitochondrial and lysosomal damage, and a higher number of autophagosomes than anionic NPs. In general, nonphagocytic cells ingest cationic NPs to a higher extent, but charge density and hydrophobicity are equally important; phagocytic cells preferentially take up anionic NPs. Cells do not use different uptake routes for cationic and anionic NPs, but high uptake rates are usually linked to greater biological effects. The different uptake preferences of phagocytic and nonphagocytic cells for cationic and anionic NPs may influence the efficacy and selectivity of NPs for drug delivery and imaging.Keywords: endocytosis, plasma membrane, lysosomes, polystyrene particles, quantum dots, dendrimers

Interaction of current filaments in dielectric barrier discharges with relation to surface charge distributions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stollenwerk, L

2009-01-01

In a planar, laterally extended dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) system operated in glow mode, a filamentary discharge is observed. The filaments tend to move laterally and hence tend to cause collisions. Thereby, usually one collision partner becomes destroyed. In this paper, the collision process and especially the preceding time period is investigated. Beside the luminescence density of the filaments, the surface charge density accumulated between the single breakdowns of the DBD is observed via an optical measurement technique based on the linear electro-optical effect (pockels effect). A ring-like substructure of the surface charge distribution of a single filament is found, which correlates to the filament interaction behaviour. Furthermore, a preferred filament distance is found, suggesting the formation of a filamentary quasi-molecule.

Reduced critical rotation for resistive-wall mode stabilization in a near-axisymmetric configuration.

Science.gov (United States)

Reimerdes, H; Garofalo, A M; Jackson, G L; Okabayashi, M; Strait, E J; Chu, M S; In, Y; La Haye, R J; Lanctot, M J; Liu, Y Q; Navratil, G A; Solomon, W M; Takahashi, H; Groebner, R J

2007-02-02

Recent DIII-D experiments with reduced neutral beam torque and minimum nonaxisymmetric perturbations of the magnetic field show a significant reduction of the toroidal plasma rotation required for the stabilization of the resistive-wall mode (RWM) below the threshold values observed in experiments that apply nonaxisymmetric magnetic fields to slow the plasma rotation. A toroidal rotation frequency of less than 10 krad/s at the q=2 surface (measured with charge exchange recombination spectroscopy using C VI) corresponding to 0.3% of the inverse of the toroidal Alfvén time is sufficient to sustain the plasma pressure above the ideal MHD no-wall stability limit. The low-rotation threshold is found to be consistent with predictions by a kinetic model of RWM damping.

AFM studies of a new type of radiation defect on mica surfaces caused by highly charged ion impact

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruehlicke, C.; Briere, M.A.; Schneider, D.

1994-01-01

Radiation induced defects on mica caused by the impact of slow very highly charged ions (SVHCI) have been investigated with an atomic force microscope (AFM). Freshly cleaved surfaces of different types of muscovite were irradiated with SVHCI extracted from the LLNL electron beam ion trap (EBIT) at velocities of ca. 2 keV/amu. Atomic force microscopy of the surface reveals the formation of blisterlike defects associated with single ion impact. The determined defect volume which appears to increase linearly with the incident charge state and exhibits a threshold incident charge state has been determined using the AFM. These results indicate that target atoms are subjected to mutual electrostatic repulsion due to ionization through potential electron emission upon approach of the ion. If the repulsion leads to permanent atomic displacement, surface defects are formed

Shielding wall for thermonuclear device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uchida, Takaho.

1989-01-01

This invention concerns shielding walls opposing to plasmas of a thermonuclear device and it is an object thereof to conduct reactor operation with no troubles even if a portion of shielding wall tiles should be damaged. That is, the shielding wall tiles are constituted as a dual layer structure in which the lower base tiles are connected by means of bolts to first walls. Further, the upper surface tiles are bolt-connected to the layer base tiles. In this structure, the plasma thermal loads are directly received by the surface layer tiles and heat is conducted by means of conduction and radiation to the underlying base tiles and the first walls. Even upon occurrence of destruction accidents to the surface layer tiles caused by incident heat or electromagnetic force upon elimination of plasmas, since the underlying base tiles remain as they are, the first walls constituted with stainless steels, etc. are not directly exposed to the plasmas. Accordingly, the integrity of the first walls having cooling channels can be maintained and sputtering intrusion of atoms of high atom number into the plasmas can be prevented. (I.S.)

Newly developed surface coil for endoluminal MRI, depiction of pig gastric wall layers and vascular architecture in ex vivo study.

Science.gov (United States)

Morita, Yoshinori; Kutsumi, Hiromu; Yoshinaka, Hayato; Matsuoka, Yuichiro; Kuroda, Kagayaki; Gotanda, Masakazu; Sekino, Naomi; Kumamoto, Etsuko; Yoshida, Masaru; Inokuchi, Hideto; Azuma, Takeshi

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to visualize the gastric wall layers and to depict the vascular architecture in vitro by using resected porcine stomachs studied with high-spatial resolution magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. Normal dissected porcine stomach samples (n = 4) were examined with a 3 Tesla MR system using a newly developed surface coil. MR images were obtained by the surface coil as receiver and a head coil as transmitter. High-spatial-resolution spin-echo MR images were obtained with a field of view of 8 x 8 cm, a matrix of 256 x 128 and slice thicknesses of 3 and 5 mm. T1 and T2-weighted MR images clearly depicted the normal porcine gastric walls as consisting of four distinct layers. In addition, vascular architectures in proper muscle layers were also visualized, which were confirmed by histological examinations to correspond to blood vessels. High-spatial-resolution MR imaging using a surface coil placed closely to the gastric wall enabled the differentiation of porcine gastric wall layers and the depiction of the blood vessels in proper muscle layer in this experimental study.

Newly developed surface coil for endoluminal MRI, depiction of pig gastric wall layers and vascular architecture in ex vivo study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morita, Yoshinori; Kutsumi, Hiromu; Yoshinaka, Hayato

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to visualize the gastric wall layers and to depict the vascular architecture in vitro by using resected porcine stomachs studied with high-spatial resolution magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. Normal dissected porcine stomach samples (n=4) were examined with a 3 Tesla MR system using a newly developed surface coil. MR images were obtained by the surface coil as receiver and a head coil as transmitter. High-spatial-resolution spin-echo MR images were obtained with a field of view of 8 x 8 cm, a matrix of 256 x 128 and slice thicknesses of 3 and 5 mm. T1 and T2-weighted MR images clearly depicted the normal porcine gastric walls as consisting of four distinct layers. In addition, vascular architectures in proper muscle layers were also visualized, which were confirmed by histological examinations to correspond to blood vessels. High-spatial-resolution MR imaging using a surface coil placed closely to the gastric wall enabled the differentiation of porcine gastric wall layers and the depiction of the blood vessels in proper muscle layer in this experimental study. (author)

Tuning the Electron Gas at an Oxide Heterointerface via Free Surface Charges

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bell, Christopher

2011-08-11

Oxide heterointerfaces are emerging as one of the most exciting materials systems in condensed matter science. One remarkable example is the LaAlO{sub 3}/SrTiO{sub 3} (LAO/STO) interface, a model system in which a highly mobile electron gas forms between two band insulators, exhibiting two dimensional superconductivity and unusual magnetotransport properties. An ideal tool to tune such an electron gas is the electrostatic field effect. In principle, the electrostatic field can be generated by bound charges due to polarization (as in the normal and ferroelectric field effects) or by adding excess free charge. In previous studies, a large modulation of the carrier density and mobility of the LAO/STO interface has been achieved using the normal field effect. However, little attention has been paid to the field effect generated by free charges. This issue is scarcely addressed, even in conventional semiconductor devices, since the free charges are typically not stable. Here, we demonstrate an unambiguous tuning of the LAO/STO interface conductivity via free surface charges written using conducting atomic force microscopy (AFM). The modulation of the carrier density was found to be reversible, nonvolatile and surprisingly large, {approx}3 x 10{sup 13} cm{sup -2}, comparable to the maximum modulation by the normal field effect. Our finding reveal the efficiency of free charges in controlling the conductivity of this oxide interface, and suggest that this technique may be extended more generally to other oxide systems.

Carbon-Nanotubes-Supported Pd Nanoparticles for Alcohol Oxidations in Fuel Cells: Effect of Number of Nanotube Walls on Activity.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jin; Lu, Shanfu; Xiang, Yan; Shen, Pei Kang; Liu, Jian; Jiang, San Ping

2015-09-07

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are well known electrocatalyst supports due to their high electrical conductivity, structural stability, and high surface area. Here, we demonstrate that the number of inner tubes or walls of CNTs also have a significant promotion effect on the activity of supported Pd nanoparticles (NPs) for alcohol oxidation reactions of direct alcohol fuel cells (DAFCs). Pd NPs with similar particle size (2.1-2.8 nm) were uniformly assembled on CNTs with different number of walls. The results indicate that Pd NPs supported on triple-walled CNTs (TWNTs) have the highest mass activity and stability for methanol, ethanol, and ethylene glycol oxidation reactions, as compared to Pd NPs supported on single-walled and multi-walled CNTs. Such a specific promotion effect of TWNTs on the electrocatalytic activity of Pd NPs is not related to the contribution of metal impurities in CNTs, oxygen-functional groups of CNTs or surface area of CNTs and Pd NPs. A facile charge transfer mechanism via electron tunneling between the outer wall and inner tubes of CNTs under electrochemical driving force is proposed for the significant promotion effect of TWNTs for the alcohol oxidation reactions in alkaline solutions. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Angle resolved electron spectroscopy of spontaneous ionization processes occurring in doubly charged ion-surface collisions at grazing incidence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wouters, P.A.A.F.; Emmichoven, P.A.Z. van; Niehaus, A.

1989-01-01

The experimental setup used to measure electron spectra at well defined detection angles for grazing incidence doubly charged ion-surface collisions at keV-energies is described. Electron spectra are reported for the rare gas ions colliding with a Cu(110)-surface. The spectra are analyzed in terms of various spontaneous ionization processes using a newly developed model. It is found that double capture followed by atomic auto-ionization on the incoming trajectory and Auger-capture processes in which the first and second hole in the doubly charged projectiles are successively filled are the main processes contributing to the electron spectra. From a comparison of model calculations with measured spectra it is concluded that the metal electrons cannot adapt adiabatically to the sudden changes of the charge state of the projectile in front of the surface. A parameter characterizing the partly diabatic behavior is determined. The variation of spectra upon adsorption of a monolayer of oxygen on the surface is reported and discussed. (author)

Charging method of water hole with ANFO explosive

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shimizu, Susumu

1988-02-28

It has been investigated how to charge a water hole with an inexpensive explosive for blasting. An experiment was made using the combination of a plasticized resin hose and the ANFO charger as the method for making the most of the ANFO explosive aiming at charging a hole with the explosive at a low cost without damaging the hole wall. The experimental result indicates that any water hole with spring water can be charged with the explosive using the ANFO charger combined with the plasticized resin hose. The method is superior to conventional methods in cost and workability because the working atmosphere is not aggravated and the hole wall is not damaged without using an expensive vacuum collector. Charging a blasting hole 165 mm or less in diameter with the explosive will be investigated for commercialization in future. (4 figs)

Development of a robot for decontamination of reactor well and maintenance pit wall surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miyakawa, Minoru; Nozawa, Katsuro; Mizutani, Takeshi; Onozuka, Kazuaki; Morita, Isamu

1984-01-01

A robot has been developed at Hamaoka BWR Power Plant of Chubu Electric Power Company, Inc., which performs the decontamination of the wall surfaces of reactor wells and maintenance pits. The robot is controlled with a control box through a micro-computer. The mechanical structure and working principle of this robot is explained. One of the special features of this robot is that it perceives the steps on a wall, and washes the vertical and horizontal surfaces with two different types of brushes. As the material for the bristles of the brushes, nylon with alumina as abrasive (TAINEX-A made by Dupont Ltd.) was selected after some experience. The design specifications of the brushes were determined, based on the results of intensive performance test, which are shown in this report. The efficiency of this robot was proved by applying it to the decontamination of the reactor wells in the periodic inspection and maintenance of Unit 1 and Unit 2 in the Hamaoka BWR Power Plant. As the result of this decontamination, the contamination level was reduced from about 10 -3 μCi/cm 2 to about 10 -5 μCi/cm 2 . The measured results of contamination after the first and third decontamination works are listed for various parts of the well surfaces. (Aoki, K.)

Characteristics of wall pressure over wall with permeable coating

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Song, Woo Seog; Shin, Seungyeol; Lee, Seungbae [Inha Univ., Incheon (Korea, Republic of)

2012-11-15

Fluctuating wall pressures were measured using an array of 16 piezoelectric transducers beneath a turbulent boundary layer. The coating used in this experiment was an open cell, urethane type foam with a porosity of approximately 50 ppi. The ultimate objective of the coating is to provide a mechanical filter to reduce the wall pressure fluctuations. The ultimate objective of the coating is to provide a mechanical filter to reduce the wall pressure fluctuations. The boundary layer on the flat plate was measured by using a hot wire probe, and the CPM method was used to determine the skin friction coefficient. The wall pressure autospectra and streamwise wavenumber frequency spectra were compared to assess the attenuation of the wall pressure field by the coating. The coating is shown to attenuate the convective wall pressure energy. However, the relatively rough surface of the coating in this investigation resulted in a higher mean wall shear stress, thicker boundary layer, and higher low frequency wall pressure spectral levels compared to a smooth wall.

Formation of transition metal cluster adducts on the surface of single-walled carbon nanotubes: HRTEM studies

KAUST Repository

Kalinina, Irina V.

2014-01-01

We report the formation of chromium clusters on the outer walls of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). The clusters were obtained by reacting purified SWNTs with chromium hexacarbonyl in dibutyl ether at 100°C. The functionalized SWNTs were characterized by thermogravimetic analysis, XPS, and high-resolution TEM. The curvature of the SWNTs and the high mobility of the chromium moieties on graphitic surfaces allow the growth of the metal clusters and we propose a mechanism for their formation. © 2014 Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.

The dependence of the nuclear charge form factor on short range correlations and surface fluctuation effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Massen, S. E.; Garistov, V. P.; Grypeos, M. E.

1996-01-01

The effects of nuclear surface fluctuations on harmonic oscillator elastic charge form factor of light nuclei are investigated, simultaneously approximating the short-range correlations through a Jastrow correlation factor. Inclusion of the surface fluctuation effects within this description, by truncating the cluster expansion at the two-body part, is found to improve somewhat the fit to the elastic charge form-factor of 16 O and 40 Ca. However, the convergence of the cluster expansion is expected to deteriorate. An additional finding is that surface-fluctuation correlations produce a drastic change in the asymptotic behaviour of the point-proton form-factor, which now falls off quite slowly (i.e. as const.q -4 ) at large values of the momentum transfer q

Surface-confined electroactive molecules for multistate charge storage information.

Science.gov (United States)

Mas-Torrent, M; Rovira, C; Veciana, J

2013-01-18

Bi-stable molecular systems with potential for applications in binary memory devices are raising great interest for device miniaturization. Particular appealing are those systems that operate with electrical inputs since they are compatible with existing electronic technologies. The processing of higher memory densities in these devices could be accomplished by increasing the number of memory states in each cell, although this strategy has not been much explored yet. Here we highlight the recent advances devoted to the fabrication of charge-storage molecular surface-confined devices exhibiting multiple states. Mainly, this goal has been realized immobilizing a variety (or a combination) of electroactive molecules on a surface, although alternative approaches employing non-electroactive systems have also been described. Undoubtedly, the use of molecules with chemically tunable properties and nanoscale dimensions are raising great hopes for the devices of the future in which molecules can bring new perspectives such as multistability.

The Effect of Charge at the Surface of Silver Nanoparticles on Antimicrobial Activity against Gram-Positive and Gram-Negative Bacteria: A Preliminary Study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abbaszadegan, A.; Ghahramani, Y.; Nabavizadeh, M.; Gholami, A.; Hemmateenejad, I.; Dorostkar, S.; Sharghi, H.

2014-01-01

The bactericidal efficiency of various positively and negatively charged silver nanoparticles has been extensively evaluated in literature, but there is no report on efficacy of neutrally charged silver nanoparticles. The goal of this study is to evaluate the role of electrical charge at the surface of silver nanoparticles on antibacterial activity against a panel of microorganisms. Three different silver nanoparticles were synthesized by different methods, providing three different electrical surface charges (positive, neutral, and negative). The antibacterial activity of these nanoparticles was tested against gram-positive (i.e., Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus mutans, and Streptococcus pyogenes) and gram-negative (i.e., Escherichia coli and Proteus vulgaris) bacteria. Well diffusion and micro-dilution tests were used to evaluate the bactericidal activity of the nanoparticles. According to the obtained results, the positively-charged silver nanoparticles showed the highest bactericidal activity against all microorganisms tested. The negatively charged silver nanoparticles had the least and the neutral nanoparticles had intermediate antibacterial activity. The most resistant bacteria were Proteus vulgaris. We found that the surface charge of the silver nanoparticles was a significant factor affecting bactericidal activity on these surfaces. Although the positively charged nanoparticles showed the highest level of effectiveness against the organisms tested, the neutrally charged particles were also potent against most bacterial species.

Advanced portrayal of SMIL coating by allying CZE performance with in-capillary topographic and charge-related surface characterization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stock, Lorenz G. [Division of Chemistry and Bioanalytics, University Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, 5020 Salzburg (Austria); Christian Doppler Laboratory for Innovative Tools for the Characterization of Biosimilars, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, 5020 Salzburg (Austria); Leitner, Michael; Traxler, Lukas [Institute of Biophysics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Gruberstrasse 40, 4020 Linz (Austria); Bonazza, Klaus [Institute of Chemical Technologies and Analytics, Vienna University of Technology, Getreidemarkt 9/164, 1060 Vienna (Austria); Leclercq, Laurent; Cottet, Hervé [Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron (IBMM), UMR 5247, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Montpellier, Place Eugène Bataillon, CC 1706, 34095 Montpellier (France); Friedbacher, Gernot [Institute of Chemical Technologies and Analytics, Vienna University of Technology, Getreidemarkt 9/164, 1060 Vienna (Austria); Ebner, Andreas [Institute of Biophysics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Gruberstrasse 40, 4020 Linz (Austria); Stutz, Hanno, E-mail: hanno.stutz@sbg.ac.at [Division of Chemistry and Bioanalytics, University Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, 5020 Salzburg (Austria); Christian Doppler Laboratory for Innovative Tools for the Characterization of Biosimilars, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, 5020 Salzburg (Austria)

2017-01-25

A successive multiple ionic polymer layer (SMIL) coating composed of four layers improved the capillary electrophoretic separation of a recombinant major birch pollen allergen and closely related variants when poly(acrylamide-co-2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propansulfonate) (55% PAMAMPS) replaced dextran sulfate as terminal SMIL layer. 55% PAMAMPS decelerated the electroosmotic flow (EOF) due to its lower charge density. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to investigate SMIL properties directly on the inner capillary surface and to relate them to EOF measurements and results of associated CZE separations of a mixture of model proteins and peptides that were performed in the same capillary. For the first time, AFM-based biosensing topography and recognition imaging mode (TREC) under liquid conditions was applied for a sequential characterization of the inner surface of a SMIL coated capillary after selected treatments including pristine SMIL, SMIL after contact with the model mixture, after alkaline rinsing, and the replenishment of the terminal polyelectrolyte layer. A cantilever with tip-tethered avidin was used to determine the charge homogeneity of the SMIL surface in the TREC mode. SMIL coated rectangular capillaries with 100 μm internal diameter assured accessibility of the inner surface for this cantilever type. Observed changes in CZE performance and EOF mobility during capillary treatment were also reflected by alterations in surface roughness and charge distribution of the SMIL coating. A renewal of the terminal SMIL layer restored the original surface properties of SMIL and the separation performance. The alliance of the novel TREC approach and CZE results allows for an improved understanding and a comprehensive insight in effects occurring on capillary coatings. - Highlights: • SMIL coating with a terminal layer of reduced charge density improves CZE separation. • Capillaries with rectangular diameter allow for in-capillary TREC-AFM measurement. �

The preparation, surface structure, zeta potential, surface charge density and photocatalytic activity of TiO2 nanostructures of different shapes

Science.gov (United States)

Grover, Inderpreet Singh; Singh, Satnam; Pal, Bonamali

2013-09-01

Titania based nanocatalysts such as sodium titanates of different morphology having superior surface properties are getting wide importance in photocatalysis research. Despite having sodium (Na) contents and its high temperature synthesis (that generally deteriorate the photoreactivity), these Na-titanates often exhibit better photoactivity than P25-TiO2 catalyst. Hence, this work demonstrated the influence of crystal structure, BET surface area, surface charge, zeta potential (ζ) and metal loading on the photocatalytic activity of as-prepared sodium titanate nanotube (TNT) and titania nanorod (TNR). Straw like hollow orthorhombic-TNT (Na2Ti2O5·H2O) particles (W = 9-12 nm and L = 82-115 nm) and rice like pure anatase-TNR particles (W = 8-13 nm and L = 81-134 nm) are obtained by the hydrothermal treatment of P25-TiO2 with NaOH, which in fact, altered the net surface charge of TNT and TNR particles. The observed ζ = -2.82 (P25-TiO2), -13.5 (TNT) and -22.5 mV (TNR) are significantly altered by the Ag and Cu deposition. It has been found here that TNT displayed best photocatalytic activity for the imidacloprid insecticide (C9H10ClN5O2) degradation to CO2 formation under UV irradiation because of its largest surface area 176 m2 g-1 among the catalysts studied.

Iodide Sorption to Clays and the Relationship to Surface Charge and Clay Texture - 12356

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miller, Andrew; Kruichiak, Jessica; Tellez, Hernesto; Wang, Yifeng [Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185 (United States)

2012-07-01

Iodine is assumed to behave conservatively in clay barriers around nuclear waste repositories and in natural sediments. Batch experiments tend to show little to no sorption, while in column experiments iodine is often retarded relative to tritiated water. Current surface complexation theory cannot account for negatively charged ion sorption to a negatively charged clay particle. Surface protonation and iodide sorption to clay minerals were examined using surface titrations and batch sorption experiments with a suite of clay minerals. Surface titrations were completed spanning a range of both pH values and ionic strengths. For reference, similar titrations were performed on pure forms of an Al-O powder. The titration curves were deconvoluted to attain the pKa distribution for each material at each ionic strength. The pKa distribution for the Al-O shows two distinct peaks at 4.8 and 7.5, which are invariant with ionic strength. The pKa distribution of clays was highly variable between the different minerals and as a function of ionic strength. Iodide sorption experiments were completed at high solid:solution ratios to exacerbate sorption properties. Palygorskite and kaolinite had the highest amount of iodide sorption and montmorillonite had the least. (authors)

Collisional charging of individual submillimeter particles: Using ultrasonic levitation to initiate and track charge transfer

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Victor; James, Nicole M.; Waitukaitis, Scott R.; Jaeger, Heinrich M.

2018-03-01

Electrostatic charging of insulating fine particles can be responsible for numerous phenomena ranging from lightning in volcanic plumes to dust explosions. However, even basic aspects of how fine particles become charged are still unclear. Studying particle charging is challenging because it usually involves the complexities associated with many-particle collisions. To address these issues, we introduce a method based on acoustic levitation, which makes it possible to initiate sequences of repeated collisions of a single submillimeter particle with a flat plate, and to precisely measure the particle charge in situ after each collision. We show that collisional charge transfer between insulators is dependent on the hydrophobicity of the contacting surfaces. We use glass, which we modify by attaching nonpolar molecules to the particle, the plate, or both. We find that hydrophilic surfaces develop significant positive charges after contacting hydrophobic surfaces. Moreover, we demonstrate that charging between a hydrophilic and a hydrophobic surface is suppressed in an acidic environment and enhanced in a basic one. Application of an electric field during each collision is found to modify the charge transfer, again depending on surface hydrophobicity. We discuss these results within the context of contact charging due to ion transfer, and we show that they lend strong support to O H- ions as the charge carriers.

Direct Observation of Domain-Wall Surface Tension by Deflating or Inflating a Magnetic Bubble

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xueying; Vernier, Nicolas; Zhao, Weisheng; Yu, Haiming; Vila, Laurent; Zhang, Yue; Ravelosona, Dafiné

2018-02-01

The surface energy of a magnetic domain wall (DW) strongly affects its static and dynamic behaviors. However, this effect is seldom directly observed, and some of the related phenomena are not well understood. Moreover, a reliable method to quantify the DW surface energy is still absent. Here, we report a series of experiments in which the DW surface energy becomes a dominant parameter. We observe that a semicircular magnetic domain bubble can spontaneously collapse under the Laplace pressure induced by DW surface energy. We further demonstrate that the surface energy can lead to a geometrically induced pinning when the DW propagates in a Hall cross or from a nanowire into a nucleation pad. Based on these observations, we develop two methods to quantify the DW surface energy, which can be very helpful in the estimation of intrinsic parameters such as Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interactions or exchange stiffness in magnetic ultrathin films.

Two and three electron Auger transitions in collisions of highly-charged ions with surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moretto-Capelle, P.; Bordenave-Montesquieu, A.; Benoit-Cattin, P.; Andriamonje, S.; Andrae, H.J.

1991-01-01

The Auger electron spectra from Ar 9+ approaching at 265 eV a Si or metal surface in vacua of 10 -5 Pa or UHV are identical. Experiments on atomic physics in front of surfaces are thus possible in standard vacuum. N 7+ approaching a surface at 1000 eV penetrates with great probability into the bulk and gives rise to K 2 L 2 L double Auger lines, observed for the first time with low energy highly charged ions. (orig.)

Effect of surface charge on the colloidal stability and in vitro uptake of carboxymethyl dextran-coated iron oxide nanoparticles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ayala, Vanessa; Herrera, Adriana P.; Latorre-Esteves, Magda; Torres-Lugo, Madeline; Rinaldi, Carlos

2013-01-01

Nanoparticle physicochemical properties such as surface charge are considered to play an important role in cellular uptake and particle–cell interactions. In order to systematically evaluate the role of surface charge on the uptake of iron oxide nanoparticles, we prepared carboxymethyl-substituted dextrans with different degrees of substitution, ranging from 38 to 5 groups per chain, and reacted them using carbodiimide chemistry with amine–silane-coated iron oxide nanoparticles with narrow size distributions in the range of 33–45 nm. Surface charge of carboxymethyl-substituted dextran-coated nanoparticles ranged from −50 to 5 mV as determined by zeta potential measurements, and was dependent on the number of carboxymethyl groups incorporated in the dextran chains. Nanoparticles were incubated with CaCo-2 human colon cancer cells. Nanoparticle–cell interactions were observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy and uptake was quantified by elemental analysis using inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy. Mechanisms of internalization were inferred using pharmacological inhibitors for fluid-phase, clathrin-mediated, and caveola-mediated endocytosis. Results showed increased uptake for nanoparticles with greater negative charge. Internalization patterns suggest that uptake of the most negatively charged particles occurs via non-specific interactions

Effect of surface charge on the colloidal stability and in vitro uptake of carboxymethyl dextran-coated iron oxide nanoparticles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ayala, Vanessa; Herrera, Adriana P.; Latorre-Esteves, Magda; Torres-Lugo, Madeline [University of Puerto Rico, Department of Chemical Engineering (United States); Rinaldi, Carlos, E-mail: carlos.rinaldi@bme.ufl.edu [University of Florida, J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering (United States)

2013-08-15

Nanoparticle physicochemical properties such as surface charge are considered to play an important role in cellular uptake and particle-cell interactions. In order to systematically evaluate the role of surface charge on the uptake of iron oxide nanoparticles, we prepared carboxymethyl-substituted dextrans with different degrees of substitution, ranging from 38 to 5 groups per chain, and reacted them using carbodiimide chemistry with amine-silane-coated iron oxide nanoparticles with narrow size distributions in the range of 33-45 nm. Surface charge of carboxymethyl-substituted dextran-coated nanoparticles ranged from -50 to 5 mV as determined by zeta potential measurements, and was dependent on the number of carboxymethyl groups incorporated in the dextran chains. Nanoparticles were incubated with CaCo-2 human colon cancer cells. Nanoparticle-cell interactions were observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy and uptake was quantified by elemental analysis using inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy. Mechanisms of internalization were inferred using pharmacological inhibitors for fluid-phase, clathrin-mediated, and caveola-mediated endocytosis. Results showed increased uptake for nanoparticles with greater negative charge. Internalization patterns suggest that uptake of the most negatively charged particles occurs via non-specific interactions.

A film-based wall shear stress sensor for wall-bounded turbulent flows

Science.gov (United States)

Amili, Omid; Soria, Julio

2011-07-01

In wall-bounded turbulent flows, determination of wall shear stress is an important task. The main objective of the present work is to develop a sensor which is capable of measuring surface shear stress over an extended region applicable to wall-bounded turbulent flows. This sensor, as a direct method for measuring wall shear stress, consists of mounting a thin flexible film on the solid surface. The sensor is made of a homogeneous, isotropic, and incompressible material. The geometry and mechanical properties of the film are measured, and particles with the nominal size of 11 μm in diameter are embedded on the film's surface to act as markers. An optical technique is used to measure the film deformation caused by the flow. The film has typically deflection of less than 2% of the material thickness under maximum loading. The sensor sensitivity can be adjusted by changing the thickness of the layer or the shear modulus of the film's material. The paper reports the sensor fabrication, static and dynamic calibration procedure, and its application to a fully developed turbulent channel flow at Reynolds numbers in the range of 90,000-130,000 based on the bulk velocity and channel full height. The results are compared to alternative wall shear stress measurement methods.

Formation of surface nano-structures by plasma expansion induced by highly charged ions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moslem, W. M. [Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Port Said University, Port Said (Egypt); Centre for Theoretical Physics, The British University in Egypt (BUE), El-Shorouk City, Cairo (Egypt) and International Centre for Advanced Studies in Physical Sciences, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Ruhr University Bochum, D-44780 Bochum (Germany); El-Said, A. S. [Physics Department, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261 (Saudi Arabia); Nuclear and Radiation Physics Laboratory, Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Mansoura University, 35516 Mansoura (Egypt) and Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), Bautzner Landstr. 128, 01328 Dresden (Germany)

2012-12-15

Slow highly charged ions (HCIs) create surface nano-structures (nano-hillocks) on the quartz surface. The formation of hillocks was only possible by surpassing a potential energy threshold. By using the plasma expansion approach with suitable hydrodynamic equations, the creation mechanism of the nano-hillocks induced by HCIs is explained. Numerical analysis reveal that within the nanoscale created plasma region, the increase of the temperature causes an increase of the self-similar solution validity domain, and consequently the surface nano-hillocks become taller. Furthermore, the presence of the negative (positive) nano-dust particles would lead to increase (decrease) the nano-hillocks height.

Charge distribution of metallic single walled carbon nanotube–graphene junctions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robert, P T; Danneau, R

2014-01-01

We report numeric and analytic calculations of the electrostatic properties for armchair carbon nanotube–graphene junctions. Using a semi-empirical method we first demonstrate that the equilibrium distance between a carbon nanotube and a graphene sheet varies with respect to the diameter of the carbon nanotube. We find significantly reduced values compared to AB-stacked graphene sheets in graphite, while even smaller value is found for a fullerene C 60 implying a dimensionality dependence of the equilibrium distance between graphene and the other sp 2 carbon allotropes. Then, we use conformal mapping and a charge–dipole model to study the charge distribution of the carbon nanotube–graphene junctions in various configurations. We observe that the charges are accumulated/depleted at and near the vicinity of the junctions and that capped carbon nanotubes induce a significantly smaller charge concentration at their ends than the open-end nanotubes. We demonstrate that the carbon nanotube influence on the graphene sheet is limited to only few atomic rows. Such an influence strongly depends on the distance between carbon nanotube and the graphene sheet and scales with the carbon nanotube radius, while the potential difference does not modify the length over which the charge concentration is disturbed by the presence of the tube. By studying the potential landscape of carbon nanotube–graphene junctions, our work could be used as a starting point to model the charge carrier injection in these unconventional systems. (paper)

The Impact of Sonication on the Surface Quality of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes.

Science.gov (United States)

Koh, Byumseok; Cheng, Wei

2015-08-01

Sonication process is regularly adopted for dispersing single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in an aqueous medium. This can be achieved by either covalent functionalization of SWCNTs with strong acid or by noncovalent functionalization using dispersants that adsorb onto the surface of SWCNTs during dispersion. Because the dispersion process is usually performed using sonication, unintentional free radical formation during sonication process may induce covalent modification of SWCNT surface. Herein, we have systematically investigated the status of SWCNT surface modification under various sonication conditions using Raman spectroscopy. Comparing ID /IG (Raman intensities between D and G bands) ratio of SWCNTs under various sonication conditions suggests that typical sonication conditions (1-6 h bath sonication with sonication power between 3 and 80 W) in aqueous media do not induce covalent modification of SWCNT surface. In addition, we confirm that SWCNT dispersion with single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) involves noncovalent adsorption of ssDNA onto the surface of SWCNTs, but not covalent linkage between ssDNA and SWCNT surface. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association.

Effect of nitrogen plasma afterglow on the surface charge effect resulted during XPS surface analysis of amorphous carbon nitride thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Kayed, Kamal

2018-06-01

The aim of this paper is to investigate the relationship between the micro structure and the surface charge effect resulted during XPS surface analysis of amorphous carbon nitride thin films prepared by laser ablation method. The study results show that the charge effect coefficient (E) is not just a correction factor. We found that the changes in this coefficient value due to incorporation of nitrogen atoms into the carbon network are related to the spatial configurations of the sp2 bonded carbon atoms, order degree and sp2 clusters size. In addition, results show that the curve E vs. C(sp3)-N is a characteristic curve of the micro structure. This means that using this curve makes it easy to sorting the samples according to the micro structure (hexagonal rings or chains).

Wall locking and multiple nonlinear states of magnetic islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Persson, Mikael; Australian National Univ., Canberra, ACT

1994-01-01

The nonlinear evolution of magnetic islands is analysed in configurations with multiple resonant magnetic surfaces. The existence of multiple nonlinear steady states, is discussed. These are shown to be associated with states where the dynamics around the different rational surfaces are coupled or decoupled and in the presence of a wall of finite resistivity may correspond wall-locked or non-wall-locked magnetic islands. For the case of strong wall stabilization the locking is shown to consist of two different phases. During the first phase the locking of the plasma at the different rational surfaces occurs. Only when the outermost resonant magnetic surface has locked to the inner surfaces can the actual wall locking process take place. Consequently, wall locking, of a global mode, involving more than one rational surface, can be prevented by the decoupling of the resonant magnetic surfaces by plasma rotation. Possible implications on tokamak experiments are discussed. (author)

Impact of the surface quality on the thermal shock performance of beryllium armor tiles for first wall applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Spilker, B., E-mail: b.spilker@fz-juelich.de; Linke, J.; Pintsuk, G.; Wirtz, M.

2016-11-01

Highlights: • Different surface qualities of S-65 beryllium are tested under high heat flux conditions. • After 1000 thermal shocks, the loaded area exhibits a crucial destruction. • Stress accelerated grain boundary oxidation/dynamic embrittlement effects are linked to the thermal shock performance of beryllium. • Thermally induced cracks form between 1 and 10 pulses and grow wider and deeper between 10 and 100 pulses. • Thermally induced cracks form and propagate independently from surface grooves and the surface quality. - Abstract: Beryllium will be applied as first wall armor material in ITER. The armor has to sustain high steady state and transient power fluxes. For transient events like edge localized modes, these transient power fluxes rise up to 1.0 GW m{sup −2} with a duration of 0.5–0.75 ms in the divertor region and a significant fraction of this power flux is deposited on the first wall as well. In the present work, the reference beryllium grade for the ITER first wall application S-65 was prepared with various surface conditions and subjected to transient power fluxes (thermal shocks) with ITER relevant loading parameters. After 1000 thermal shocks, a crucial destruction of the entire loaded area was observed and linked to the stress accelerated grain boundary oxidation (SAGBO)/dynamic embrittlement (DE) effect. Furthermore, the study revealed that the majority of the thermally induced cracks formed between 1 and 10 pulses and then grew wider and deeper with increasing pulse number. The surface quality did not influence the cracking behavior of beryllium in any detectable way. However, the polished surface demonstrated the highest resistance against the observed crucial destruction mechanism.

Impact of nanosilver on various DNA lesions and HPRT gene mutations - effects of charge and surface coating

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Huk, A.; Izak-Nau, E.; el Yamani, N.; Uggerud, H.; Vadset, M.; Zasońska, Beata Anna; Duschl, A.; Dusinska, M.

2015-01-01

Roč. 12, 24 July (2015), 25_1-25_20 ISSN 1743-8977 Institutional support: RVO:61389013 Keywords : silver nanomaterials * surface charge * surface coating Subject RIV: CD - Macromolecular Chemistry Impact factor: 8.649, year: 2015

Influence of surface charge on the transport characteristics of nanowire-field effect transistors in liquid environments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nozaki, Daijiro, E-mail: daijiro.nozaki@gmail.com, E-mail: research@nano.tu-dresden.de [Institute for Materials Science and Max Bergmann Center of Biomaterials, TU Dresden, 01062 Dresden (Germany); Kunstmann, Jens [Institute for Materials Science and Max Bergmann Center of Biomaterials, TU Dresden, 01062 Dresden (Germany); Theoretical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry and Food Chemistry, TU Dresden, 01062 Dresden (Germany); Zörgiebel, Felix [Institute for Materials Science and Max Bergmann Center of Biomaterials, TU Dresden, 01062 Dresden (Germany); Center for Advancing Electronics Dresden (cfAED), TU Dresden, 01062 Dresden (Germany); Cuniberti, Gianaurelio [Institute for Materials Science and Max Bergmann Center of Biomaterials, TU Dresden, 01062 Dresden (Germany); Center for Advancing Electronics Dresden (cfAED), TU Dresden, 01062 Dresden (Germany); Dresden Center for Computational Materials Science (DCCMS), TU Dresden, 01062 Dresden (Germany)

2015-05-18

One dimensional nanowire field effect transistors (NW-FETs) are a promising platform for sensor applications. The transport characteristics of NW-FETs are strongly modified in liquid environment due to the charging of surface functional groups accompanied with protonation or deprotonation. In order to investigate the influence of surface charges and ionic concentrations on the transport characteristics of Schottky-barrier NW-FETs, we have combined the modified Poisson-Boltzmann theory with the Landauer-Büttiker transport formalism. For a typical device, the model is able to capture the reduction of the sensitivity of NW-FETs in ionic solutions due to the screening from counter ions as well as a local gating from surface functional groups. Our approach allows to model, to investigate, and to optimize realistic Schottky-barrier NW-FET devices in liquid environment.

Fabrication of Al2O3 Nano-Structure Functional Film on a Cellulose Insulation Polymer Surface and Its Space Charge Suppression Effect

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jian Hao

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Cellulose insulation polymer (paper/pressboard has been widely used in high voltage direct current (HVDC transformers. One of the most challenging issues in the insulation material used for HVDC equipment is the space charge accumulation. Effective ways to suppress the space charge injection/accumulation in insulation material is currently a popular research topic. In this study, an aluminium oxide functional film was deposited on a cellulose insulation pressboard surface using reactive radio frequency (RF magnetron sputtering. The sputtered thin film was characterized by the scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM/EDS, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS, and X-ray diffraction (XRD. The influence of the deposited functional film on the dielectric properties and the space charge injection/accumulation behaviour was investigated. A preliminary exploration of the space charge suppression effect is discussed. SEM/EDS, XPS, and XRD results show that the nano-structured Al2O3 film with amorphous phase was successfully fabricated onto the fibre surface. The cellulose insulation pressboard surface sputtered by Al2O3 film has lower permittivity, conductivity, and dissipation factor values in the lower frequency (<103 Hz region. The oil-impregnated sputtered pressboard presents an apparent space-charge suppression effect. Compared with the pressboard sputtered with Al2O3 film for 90 min, the pressboard sputtered with Al2O3 film for 60 min had a better space charge suppression effect. Ultra-small Al2O3 particles (<10 nm grew on the surface of the larger nanoparticles. The nano-structured Al2O3 film sputtered on the fibre surface could act as a functional barrier layer for suppression of the charge injection and accumulation. This study offers a new perspective in favour of the application of insulation pressboard with a nano-structured function surface against space charge injection/accumulation in HVDC equipment.

Domain wall networks on solitons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sutcliffe, Paul

2003-01-01

Domain wall networks on the surface of a soliton are studied in a simple theory. It consists of two complex scalar fields, in 3+1 dimensions, with a global U(1)xZ n symmetry, where n>2. Solutions are computed numerically in which one of the fields forms a Q ball and the other field forms a network of domain walls localized on the surface of the Q ball. Examples are presented in which the domain walls lie along the edges of a spherical polyhedron, forming junctions at its vertices. It is explained why only a small restricted class of polyhedra can arise as domain wall networks

Wafer Surface Charge Reversal as a Method of Simplifying Nanosphere Lithography for Reactive Ion Etch Texturing of Solar Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Inns

2007-01-01

Full Text Available A simplified nanosphere lithography process has been developed which allows fast and low-waste maskings of Si surfaces for subsequent reactive ion etching (RIE texturing. Initially, a positive surface charge is applied to a wafer surface by dipping in a solution of aluminum nitrate. Dipping the positive-coated wafer into a solution of negatively charged silica beads (nanospheres results in the spheres becoming electrostatically attracted to the wafer surface. These nanospheres form an etch mask for RIE. After RIE texturing, the reflection of the surface is reduced as effectively as any other nanosphere lithography method, while this batch process used for masking is much faster, making it more industrially relevant.

Development of a robot for decontamination of reactor well and maintenance pit wall surfaces

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miyakawa, Minoru; Nozawa, Katsuro; Mizutani, Takeshi; Onozuka, Kazuaki; Morita, Isamu

1984-03-01

A robot has been developed at Hamaoka BWR Power Plant of Chubu Electric Power Company, Inc., which performs the decontamination of the wall surfaces of reactor wells and maintenance pits. The robot is controlled with a control box through a micro-computer. The mechanical structure and working principle of this robot is explained. One of the special features of this robot is that it perceives the steps on a wall, and washes the vertical and horizontal surfaces with two different types of brushes. As the material for the bristles of the brushes, nylon with alumina as abrasive (TAINEX-A made by Dupont Ltd.) was selected after some experience. The design specifications of the brushes were determined, based on the results of intensive performance test, which are shown in this report. The efficiency of this robot was proved by applying it to the decontamination of the reactor wells in the periodic inspection and maintenance of Unit 1 and Unit 2 in the Hamaoka BWR Power Plant. As the result of this decontamination, the contamination level was reduced from 10/sup 3/ ..mu..Ci/cm/sup 2/ to about 10/sup 5/ ..mu..Ci/cm/sup 2/. The measured results of contamination after the first and third decontamination works are listed for various parts of the well surfaces.